I’m going to share something that not a lot of people know about me…I have a slight obsession with the Amish.
Maybe the roots of this obsession trace back to listening to my Mom read us all the “Little House on the Prairie” books when we were young. While the Ingalls family in those books weren’t Amish, their lifestyle portrayed during that time in history, held many similarities. Or maybe it was the many trips we took as a family to Lancaster, PA growing up that caused this passion. Whatever the cause, there is just something about the simplicity of that lifestyle, the made-from-scratch work ethic, and the fact that most families own horses that has drawn me to the Amish (I know, not all noble reasons…).
One of my housemates in college lived in a small town in Ohio that was also home to an Amish community. I remember visiting her one weekend and I asked why some of the horses pulling the buggies had visors on either side of their face. She explained that those visors help the horses keep their eyes straight ahead on the road, and not get spooked by the cars or other distractions on their sides or behind them. The horses had blinders on so their focus and attention remained on the road ahead.
I read a Psalm the other morning that brought this image to life,
“For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I will walk in your faithfulness.” -Psalm 26:8
The Lord gripped my heart with these words. Can I put on blinders as well and keep God’s steadfast love before my eyes?
There are so many things that scream for our attention. Some good, some bad…but they share the same goal, to win our focus. That’s probably why this verse convicted me. Am I continually walking with God’s steadfast love before my eyes? Am I doing this regardless of my current circumstances or fears?
Do I believe that God’s love is steadfast? Do I believe that it’s unchanging and will never go away? It’s one thing for that belief to be in our heads, but it’s another for it to be so real that our actions reflect our trust in it.
As I repeated this verse out loud again and again it started sinking into my heart. Moment by moment (we get to practice this for our whole lives) as I strive to keep the Lord’s steadfast love before my eyes, my prayer is that I will walk in His faithfulness.
His faithfulness.
He is the one leading us, with us, and holding us. He knows where the road ahead leads, and He is walking with us now. He is faithful.
As we press on, may we rest in this truth. May we remember God’s faithfulness in our lives, and trust that He will remain faithful in the hours, days, and weeks ahead.
Like the blinders that those horses wear, may we keep God’s steadfast love before our eyes, not looking to the right, the left, or even behind us, but instead walking in His faithfulness no matter our circumstances.
*I wrote this blog on March 9, 2020…just a little over a year ago, and with no idea what was on the horizon. Due to the severity of the pandemic, we quickly pivoted a lot of our “normal” ministry resources and it sat unpublished on my computer. As I recently re-read the draft of this blog, I couldn’t help but feel in awe of God’s timing. At the beginning of this world-wide pandemic, before we had any idea what 2020 had in store, He was faithful. During those months of fear, anxiety, canceled plans, and uncertainty…He was faithful. And now here we stand in March, 2021, and He is still faithful. I pray His steadfast love is still before your eyes, and that we can together continue walking and trusting in His faithfulness.