Live for the Line, Not the Dot

Jesus said, “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness” (Matthew 6:22-23). He makes it clear that our vision is faulty. We need His help to see our life through different eyes—eyes focused on the eternal. Physical vision is used here as a metaphor for spiritual vision, or perspective—the way we look at life.

As believers in Christ, our theology gives us perspective. It tells us that this life is the preface—not the book. It’s the preliminaries—not the main event. It’s the tune-up—not the concert.

Just prior to this, in Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus speaks about storing up treasures in Heaven, not earth…something that requires an eternal perspective. I think of our lives in terms of a dot and a line, signifying two phases. Our present life on earth is the dot. It begins. It ends. It’s brief. However, from the dot, a line extends that goes on forever. That line is eternity, which Christians will spend in heaven. Right now we’re living in the dot. But what are we living for? The shortsighted person lives for the dot. The person with perspective lives for the line.

That’s the heart behind Eternal Perspective Ministries: investing in the things that will last for eternity. To learn more about living for the line, not the dot, watch this short video

Would you like to support EPM’s joyful efforts to reach more people with the message of living in light of eternity? We invite you to partner with us in prayer, and if the Lord leads you, by giving to our ministry

Nanci and I and our EPM staff want to say a heartfelt thanks for your partnership in the Gospel of Jesus!

photo credit: César Augusto Serna Sz via photopin cc

Randy Alcorn (@randyalcorn) is the author of over sixty books and the founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries

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