Eyes On The Ball

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...
Hebrews 12:2 (The Message)

The first rule of tennis, or indeed any ball game is simple. Keep your eyes on the ball. It seems straightforward enough but you’d be surprised how often a novice like me must remind myself, sometimes quite audibly, “keep your eyes on the ball.”

Today was no different. As usual, I changed into my tennis gear and began my warmup routine muttering to myself that most important mantra. As I got into the groove I went from Rule 1 to Rule 2: Move your feet. The other basic rules soon followed:
Take a backswing
Follow through
And very quickly, everything was flowing smoothly. One particular backhand drive made me feel like the new Federer come to town.

But then, almost as quickly as it had begun, it all started coming apart at the seams. I started hitting awry balls and ambitious drives became home runs as they rose over and beyond the confines of the premises. All of a sudden it seemed I just could not get it right. The more I tried the worse it became. What’s wrong? I wondered. And then it hit me. I stopped, took a breath and whispered to myself, “Doosuur, keep your eyes on the ball.” And then I started again. At the beginning.

But then it’s not just on the tennis court that I find I have to remind myself of the most important truth. It all starts well enough, in the morning, as I open God’s word and turn my eyes on Jesus. But then as the day drags on, it’s so easy for me, as I’m sure you, to get so caught up in the hustle and bustle that we neglect where our focus should be. We become so engrossed in meeting up with the demands of everyday life - pleasing a demanding boss, meeting an unexpected deadline, coping with a testy client - that all of a sudden the freshness and joy of a beautiful morning fades away.

And then if we are not careful we find ourselves hitting balls askew as we slowly lose control. We let our guard slip - a careless word here, a thoughtless gesture there - and very soon we’re headed down the slippery slope with no end in sight.

How apt it was of the writer to the Hebrews to command them, “fix your eyes on Jesus...” (NIV). He does not just say “look at Jesus”. He says, fix your eyes on Him. This is much more than a casual glance. It requires one to be involved in, immersed in, the object of their attention. Consider now, what it would mean for you if you were to really fix your eyes on Jesus. If I may use an analogy, it would be like putting on a pair of glasses. The things you look at are still the same but the way you perceive them could be very different. Life takes on a whole new perspective.

If we go through the day with Jesus constantly ahead of us, coloring our circumstances, we would discover that life could be so much more fulfilling. And perhaps we wouldn’t have to drop the ball ever so often.

With love, Doosuur.