Focused On Life Above

“Focused On Life Above”

By Zach Wood

Colossians 3:1-4 NLT

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand.  Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.   For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.  And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

We do a lot of thinking every single day, don’t we?  From the time we get up in the morning to the time we lay our heads down to rest, we are constantly thinking.  We think about a lot all through the day.  We think about what to eat for breakfast, what to wear for school or work, what needs accomplished at our jobs and in class, what to eat for lunch, what plans we need to make for dinner.  We could go on and on and on about all that we think about each day. 

We think about so much stuff in a single day’s time.  I wonder what it would be like if we could watch a timeline of our thoughts all through the day.  What would that look like?  For many of us, it would probably be a bit shocking and somewhat scary to see all that we think about each day.  Maybe we might even be a bit embarrassed if not really embarrassed! 

As I was reading this passage last week from a daily devotional thought that I receive each day, it really got me thinking about what I focus my thoughts on each day.  I do think about a lot of things.  I have to admit that I think a lot about earthly things.  I think about things I would like to do, things I want and why certain things won’t or don’t happen for me.  Even though I have been richly blessed by God in so many ways, I still have so many selfish thoughts.

I’m sure all of you think about similar things whether you want to admit that or not.  Think for a few moments about your life in Christ.  We have so many Scripture references in the NT that describe how our thoughts should be like Christ always.  But you and I both know that doesn’t happen as often as it should.  We often think about what will make us happy.  We set our sights on things of this earth and not heavenly things. 

We are to set our sights and thoughts on Christ alone.  As we go through each day, whether we are at school or our jobs, we need to be constantly thinking how we can please God and how we can be a true servant.  Our life is now in God and we need to strive more to think of heavenly things and ways that we can bless others instead of so often being focused on ourselves. 

As we live each day, let us strive more to set our minds on Christ and be more aware of what He wants for us to do and what He wants for us to think about each day.  We have been raised to a new life in Christ!  Let’s truly live like we mean it!