Looking Up

Though I’m no longer a child, I still like plush toys. I have several of them from over the years — almost all of them given to me for one reason or another.

One plush toy in particular wasn’t actually given to me as a gift, but my heart feels like it was. A few years before Dad went to be with the Lord, he and I had talked about my getting a white tiger plush toy, which I did.

One feature of this white tiger is that, although the tiger is lying down, its head and eyes are always focused upward. More than once, the white tiger’s upward focus — regardless of the position it’s in — has been an encouraging reminder to me to look upward. I can have that focus by meditating on the Lord Jesus Christ and thinking of the glories of heaven; by praying and being in an attitude of prayer; by reading, quoting, and meditating on scripture. Having an uplifting, encouraging song in my heart also helps me to focus on “things above.”

I have found that having an upward focus isn’t something that just happens automatically. Though it’s easier at times than others, I need to be intentional about it. With God nothing shall be impossible!