Zooming In On God’s Heart

When I visited Rocky Mountain National Park, we saw a group of bighorn sheep and elk grazing on the mountainside. I had seen pictures of them, had actually seen a few in real life. Both species were muscular, agile, and ever ready for a fight with a challenger to the herd.

Then something happened.  I zoomed in on the bighorn rams.  That particular camera had a 20x zoom and I brought this incredible animal so close in my viewfinder that I saw the nature of his eyes.  I had seen the massive horns and their incredible balance on the sheep cliffs.  I had heard the “crack” of their jousting as they collided with forces that would break the spines of most other animals.  But I had never looked into their eyes.  It changed things for me.  I noticed how broad their vision would be because of the placement of their eyes.   This only happened because I “drew near” with a powerful zoom lens.

Something happens to our souls when we zoom in on God through His word.  We start noticing things that aren’t apparent from a distance.  We miss details, miss the single statements that change our perspective on God’s heart.  It’s happened to me many times.  I zoom in to let the scripture rest in my heart and my perspective changes.

Maybe that’s what James was talking about when he promised: “if you will draw near to God, God will draw near to you.”  Will you dare to zoom in on God’s heart and see what He really treasures, where he really wants to lead you?  Too many times my assumptions have been contradicted by times when I zoomed in on the scripture.  And much to my own relief, I heard my own quiet voice uttering, “Wow.”  Will you zoom in on God’s heart?