This was a huge week in our house. Amelia got her Pointe shoes for dance. She has been dreaming of this day since she was little. The pink satin ribbons. The elastic. The feeling of rising up on to her toes for the first time. It was a momentous occasion for sure. When my not-so-baby girl slipped those shiny pink shoes on her feet, walked to the bar, and rose on to her toes, her whole face was beaming. Those of you who have watched her dance know of the million dollar smile I’m talking about. I cried as I watched her meet this milestone in her dance career and I was just so proud of her and all the work she has put into her passion.
Skip forward a few days and I was reading a Facebook post from my friend Andrea. In it she shared a story she experienced at work. I asked her permission to share this with you here and she agreed that I could share. She posted a picture from her business of a pallet full of leaf blowers. In front of the pallet was a pile of orange cellophane that had been wrapped around the blowers. Instead of using a knife to cut the plastic wrap and free the machines, she chose to start unwinding the celephane, inch by inch. Layer by layer. A couple of trips around the package and she started feeling dizzy. She noticed that as long as she kept her eyes on the center and focused on the stack on the pallet, her focus was clear and the job was much easier. If her eyes strayed from the focal point, she quickly slipped back into dizziness and disorientation. So she quickly learned to keep her eyes focused on the stack.
I shared with her that this is how dancers function. When they are practicing or performing turns, they focus on one spot somewhere in the room or somewhere on stage. And as they turn they whip their heads around and look at the exact same spot. An analogy that Amelia shared with me that was passed down to her is that you are a dancer, but when you are turning you are like the guard at a museum. The spot on the wall is a precious jewel. Many people are itching to steal that jewel, so it is your job to keep your eye on the jewel at all times. As you are turning, you crane your neck as far as you can and when you get to the point where you think you can’t crane your neck any more, you whip you head around and find the jewel again. Dancers call this “spotting.”
Andrea made a statement in her Facebook post that she believes our walk with Jesus is similar. I couldn’t agree more! Jesus is our spot. He is our jewel. And when we take our eyes off of Him, the thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy. We lose our balance. We become dizzy and disoriented. We fall and crash on stage, hurting ourselves or others. Losing sight of Jesus, our spot, makes us unsteady. And the disorientation can be frightening. We desperately search for other places to focus. Money. Sex. Alcohol. Food. And when that happens, when we lose the “spot” of Christ, we can quickly fall and lose our balance.
The Message translation of Hebrews 12:2 says, “Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed - that exhilarating finish in and with God - he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God.”
Keep your eyes on Jesus. He keeps His sight on us. We are His “spot.” He never loses sight of us. He never lost sight of the plan His Father had for our salvation. He loves us and carries us in the palm of His hand. Even when we lose sight of Him. He’s right there beside us, catching us when we become dizzy and fall. Keep your eyes on the jewel, on Jesus. Don’t let the thief take the jewel. Don’t let Satan derail your faith. Life will get hard and messy. Just keep your eyes on Jesus. He’s the best and brightest “spot” you need.
