I like to take pictures. Well, what I really like is to have beautiful pictures to print. The problem with my camera is that it doesn’t always see things as I do. Often, I am disappointed when I look at the images my lens captured. They don’t represent what I remember seeing.

The trick is for my eyes and camera to focus on the same thing. My vision is automatic in registering the vivid color of a sunset or the majestic scene of a meadow full of flowers with distant mountain peaks. My camera takes some adjusting to replicate the same thing. The pictures turn out just the way I set my camera to “see.”

That’s how it is with life. The focus of our minds determines what our story will look like. “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Thrust in the Lord forever.” (Isaiah 16:3, 4 NIV) God’s peace is on those who keep their mind fixed on Him. When Jesus becomes out of focus, your joy becomes blurred in the chaos of everyday existence. To have your life be the beautiful picture you want, you must focus on the same thing God does; His will in your life. He is the one who can adjust the settings by easing your mind and calming your heart to clearly see your best image.

Have you ever left God out of a decision you made and have it not turn out the way you wanted? How did you bring God’s will back into focus?