Jesus said - "Your eye is the lamp of the body. When your eye is healthy, your body will be full of light. If it is bad, your whole body is full of darkness." (Matt. 6:22-23) Of what great importance is what we lay our eyes upon! This is another great passage to demonstrate that the defeat of darkness, sin, and temptation does not come from the focused elimination of the bad via the bad, but on the focused concentration of the good, from which the bad simply falls away.

Paul said it this way - "Walk therefore in the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." (Gal. 5:16). And David, having this revelation for Himself (as we need) said "I have hidden (focused, meditated on) your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against you" and "How can a man keep his way pure? By living in accordance to (the understanding and application of) Your Word." (Psalm 119:9,11) Again, it is by the revelation of the Word, not the revelation of what sin is, that gives us the power to overcome. Of course, Jesus is the Word, and revealed through the written Word by the Holy Spirit, and is our light in the darkness (John 1).

Note the verse above about the lamp of the body instructs that our eye needs to be "healthy". Interestingly, that same Hebrew word that’s translated "healthy" can also be translated as "singular". The point being obvious - a healthy eye is a singular eye. A healthy vision is a singular vision, not looking to the right or to the left for fulfillment, passion, or power, but "unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." (Heb. 12) There’s a reason Paul told us to "set our minds on things above, where Jesus is…" (Col. 3) because its’ both the wisest way and the most blessed (inner-fulfilled) way to live!

Everywhere you look these days, our eyes are being bombarded with tons of messages, information, and images. When I think about the volume of all of this, compared to what a man 150 years ago would have to deal with, it is overwhelming! The great servant of the Lord Art Katz once told me "You are apart of a special generation. I can’t imagine being a young person and having to deal with the continual rampart of filth being thrown at you from every direction." When he said that, I realized how true it really is. One can not even go to a News website without being tempted with shady pictures and links. How important, more than ever, is it that our gaze is singular, on the majestic King! And how much grace is given, in lieu, to those who will continually war for the healthiness of their soul!

Truly, David was not deadening his heart’s passions when he asked "One thing I ask….that I may gaze upon the beauty of the Lord." (Psalm 27:4) Surely David was not beating his body, forcing his gaze away from more pleasurable things to be "religious" and do the right thing. Most definitely he had the revelation (as we all need) that to look upon Jesus is to behold the most pleasurable, satisfying, fascinating and wonder-inducing thing in the universe. A true treasure/pleasure seeker! A true man after God’s own heart.

Lord, keep our eyes away from what will darken our souls. Let our eyes be filled with the light of Your face, yes, make Your face to SHINE upon us. You are our light and our salvation, and let our gaze upon You not be to fulfill a new law, or to satisfy some great requirement, but to truly understand that it is the primary purpose for which we were all created. Let our body be full of what light brings to a dark room: illumination, vision, purpose, warmth, joy, power, growth, energy, and more. Truly singular vision is healthy vision. In Jesus name, Amen.

And now, I remember that tonight (20th) there is a lunar eclipse at 9:01 CST. Interesting.