Welcome to Riveted! Attention matters. What captures it captures my heart and affects those I love. My name is Jack Anderson and there's no one I love more than God. Or so I say. But I've noticed lately I haven't noticed Him lately. The one most worthy of notice.
I want to give God what He gives me. The kindness of my attention. It's also for my sake. I pray this site helps you focus on Him too.
FYI: To be notified of future posts, please subscribe via email on the blog page or Glimpses page.
I want to give God what He gives me. The kindness of my attention. It's also for my sake. I pray this site helps you focus on Him too.
FYI: To be notified of future posts, please subscribe via email on the blog page or Glimpses page.
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Two Hearts: One Journey (Blog)
Random reflections from my own up and down friendship with God |
Glimpses of His Heart (Devotional)
Devotionals on the heart of God as He reveals Himself in Scripture. |
When pain is all I think about (Part 2)
‘It will be as if a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear, as if he enters his house and rests his hand on the wall only to have a snake bite him’. Amos 5:19 Ever feel like that? When all that can go wrong does. Cancer follows job loss follows flat tire follows heartache. The pain never ends. I've had knee pain for 3 years. Despite efforts to relieve it, it's still here. Because of some recent setbacks post surgery, I'm still dealing with it. Once you realize the pain isn't going to stop, other things stop. Sleep. Prayer. Friends. Joy. Creativity. How do I live with the pain I can't avoid? Pain can shut you inside yourself and shut everyone else out. Even God. Don't let the conversation with God stop. You can't bear the pain alone. Just as I can't let the pain meds stop if the pain in my body won't stop. 
When pain is all I think about (Part 1)
Pain can easily consume your attention. And your heart. And what holds your heart can also break it. Very seldom is it the hurts of life that break our hearts. It's hurting alone. The comfort we need is found in a friend. What most relieves my pain is not being consumed by it. How? By fixing my attention on God. For my faith can only as strong as what I focus on. 
First fall in love ... then change the world
Excerpts: Before God says ‘Go’, He first says ‘Come’. Friendship matters more to Him than ministry. I get it backwards. I value fruit-bearing over abiding. Impact over relationship. Result: Zero impact and artificial fruit. My son captures this truth well in a song he wrote ‘First let’s fall in love'. God alone can change the world. But He wants to do it with His friends. Fearless lovers who would rather make Christ known than make a mark. If ministry's all about me, all you get is me. When what you need is God. 
The Me I See
It’s hard to love me as I am if no one else does. Or if I don't feel they do. For I tend to see me as others do. Or as I think they do. The question is: Do I see me as God does? For He sees me as I am and loves me as I am. 
The sweet joy of being liked - Part 2
How do I see myself? Is my view of me true of me? Is it who God sees? I want to see the me He sees. The me I really am. Yet I tend to only see who I’m not. I also tend to think that's what you see when you see me. 
The sweet joy of being liked - Part 1
Why do I lack confidence? Question my worth? Maybe I lack confidence because I question my worth. What's amazing is that God never has. He thinks I'm worth dying for. What He does question is my self-judgment. 
The sweet comfort of your undivided attention
"The greatest gift you can give is the purity of your attention." R. Moss Attention matters! Why? People matter. And attention affects people. 
The mirror between us
I carry a mirror inside my head. If honest, I look at it more than I should. Downside is: I can’t see God, you, the beauty around me. All I see is me. 
A wake-up call for the soul
I get distracted by what I want and don’t have. Or what I have but don’t want. And I miss what I really want most: God. The God who wants me. 
Together all alone
How quickly I lose awareness of Immanuel, God 'with' us. I haven't left Him. I forget Him. I’ve not lost His presence. I've lost my awareness of it. 
Our astonishing God + my un-astonished heart Over-familiarity is a sedative. It dulls the senses. Nothing affects me. Not even God. It’s not beauty or God that changes. It's the heart I see with.
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What does God feel when I don't? (Part 2)
Excerpts: Indifference is like hypothermia. To sleep is to die. Yet it’s all I want to do. If you love me, don’t let me sleep. Get me to a fire. It’s why God cries ‘Repent!’ a lot. It simply means to return to Him. I need to connect with God. To hear His heart. He’s the fire I need. Trouble in your love life? What both hearts needs is a heart to heart. It's how you fell in love. You saw her heart. It’s her heart you need to see again. The heart you fell in love with. It’s the same with God. 
What does God feel when I don't? (Part 1)
How does my unaffected heart affect His? Is He like me? If you retreat, I will. Or If I retreat, I assume you will. As I assume God would. Does He? 
Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
Anyone made assumptions of you that aren't true? I do it to God. I stop trusting His heart. I take His 'no' as 'I don't care'. Yet He says it because He does. I cry feeling He doesn't love me. He cries because He does. 
So what's God up to on cold winter nights?
My head knows God watches over me. Why can’t my heart rest in that? Why these anxious thoughts? As if finding the 'solution' will let me rest. And yet God offers no solution. He offers Himself and His watchful care. 
But I need love with skin on - Part 2
The loss of love hurts. I can't undo it nor un-break my heart. God will not remove my grief. But He'll grieve with me. If I lose you, no one can take your place. Not even God. But He can take His. Beside me. If I'll let Him. 
But I need love with skin on - Part 1
I’m glad God loves me. But I also want love with skin on! Yes, this desire can eclipse my desire for God. But the desire itself is no offense to God. He gave it to us. Unlike Elkanah, He doesn't say 'Isn't my love enough?' 
The God who Notices
Ever felt invisible? Ever wonder if anyone ever wonders about you? The beggar in Jn. 9 can't see. Nor is he seen. A beggar is invisible. To all but himself. How does He see himself? Unworthy of notice. Until the day he is noticed by God Himself. Unaware his broken heart has broken God's. 
Total Eclipse of the Son
A total eclipse illustrates what goes on in my soul when anything other than God consumes my attention. Anything that fills my vision can hide anything. Even God. Is there a ‘moon' that's come between God and I? The glory of God is His heart. I see it best in the human face of His Son. 
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