Renew Your MindSýnishorn

Day 7: Eyes on What Is Unseen

Scripture:
"Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly, we are wasting away, inwardly, we are being renewed daily. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." – 2 Corinthians 4:16–18 (NIV)

Devotional:

Some days, it’s easy to lose heart. You try to take every thought captive, stay focused on Christ, and live with faith, but then life hits hard. Disappointment. Delay. Suffering. Pain. These visible realities press in like a storm cloud, darkening your perspective and weighing down your soul.

But Paul writes, “We do not lose heart.” How? How does he say this after describing beatings, imprisonments, hardships, and rejection? The secret is where he chooses to look. Not with his physical eyes but with the eyes of his heart. He says:

“We fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen.”

The battle for your mind and emotions is often won or lost based on where your eyes settle. If your focus stays on what is seen; your circumstances, your failures, the chaos of the world; you’ll quickly feel overwhelmed. But when you fix your gaze on what is unseen, God’s presence, promises, and eternal glory, you gain a strength that defies logic.

Notice the paradox:

• Outwardly, we are wasting away.
• Inwardly, we are being renewed day by day.

The world measures success by what’s visible. But God does His deepest work in the unseen places. You may feel like you’re falling apart on the outside, but if you keep your eyes on Him, your soul is renewed daily.

Paul even calls his suffering “light and momentary troubles.” That’s not denial; it’s comparison. Compared to the weight of eternal glory that God is preparing, the worst of this life is light. And compared to eternity, even years of pain are momentary. The only way to see your life through that lens is by shifting your focus from the visible to the invisible.

That includes shifting your focus:

• From pain to promise
• From trial to transformation
• From chaos to Christ
• From what’s now to what’s next

This shift doesn’t mean pretending your suffering isn’t real. It means realizing your suffering is not final. It’s not the whole story. And it’s not without purpose. God is using even your struggle to prepare something glorious, something eternal. That’s what you set your eyes on.

In practical terms, this means asking yourself regularly:

• “Am I looking only at the problem, or am I looking for God’s purpose?”
• “Am I interpreting today through what I see or know God has said?”
• “Am I letting the temporary dictate my mood, or am I living for the eternal?”

The eyes of faith are like night vision goggles; they allow you to see light where others see only darkness. They reveal hope where circumstances suggest none. Fixing your eyes on the unseen is not blind optimism; it’s deeply rooted trust.

What’s unseen? The Holy Spirit is working within you. The angels are guarding you. Jesus is praying for you at the Father's right hand. The glory is being formed in you. The eternal home is being prepared for you.

You might not see it with your physical eyes, but it’s real. And it’s worth fixing your focus on.

Prayer:
Father, help me not to lose heart. Teach me to see beyond the surface, to focus not on what is seen but on what is unseen. Remind me that you are working in the hidden places of my life, shaping me for eternity. Strengthen my faith to trust you, even when life feels hard. Give me eyes to see your purpose and your presence. It is in the name of Jesus Christ I pray, amen.