When our kids were growing up, I used to love to give them “glue kisses”—the kind where my lips would get stuck on their cheek and couldn’t be pried off, no matter how hard I “tried”. Now they’re grown men, with kids of their own, and each one has been introduced to grandma’s glue kisses as close to birth as possible.

In a sense, my lips are “stayed” on them, because my heart is so much filled to bursting with love for them. As a result, I delight in close contact with them and don’t want to leave or separate from them.

That’s why I love the translation of Is. 26:3-4 that says, “You keep those in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because He trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” (ESV, italics mine)

That word “stayed” means not going anywhere. It means not even wanting to go anywhere. And when our mind is stayed on something or someone it means we’re so preoccupied with them we can’t get our minds off them. In fact, we won’t even try to. Someone else may try to get our minds off them, but it won’t work. No amount of shouting, distraction, attraction, threats, or otherwise will succeed in taking our attention away from whatever or whoever our thoughts and hearts are stayed on.

If that’s something or someone harmful, that leads to danger and destruction. If that’s something wasteful, that leads to loss of time, energy, and resources. If that’s something or someone good, that’s good, but not the best, and whatever it or they are may let us down and/or disappear, which brings disappointment and anxiety. But if our mind is stayed on the Lord, that leads to perfect peace that can’t be shaken, stolen, or lost.

We keep our mind stayed on Him so we can get that perfect peace—by trusting in Him. If we don’t trust Him to take care of us, others we care about, the future, the past, world affairs, etc., we’ll give up on Him. We’ll decide we can’t count on Him, so why stick around in terms of relying on Him. We’ll take matters into our own hands and/or give them to someone else we think will do better. Either way, once we stop depending on the Lord, perfect peace gets replaced by anxiety, worry, fretting, and micromanaging to avoid things going wrong or failing.

Consider Peter, when Jesus came walking on the water to the disciples in their boat struggling against the waves to get to Genessaret:

“…Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’

^‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’

‘Come,’ he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (Mat. 14:27-30)

As long as Peter kept his eyes on Jesus, not the waves or the storm, he was able to do what no-one besides Jesus could do—walk on water. But as soon as something besides Jesus got his attention, he was “sunk” (and in this case would’ve literally been if Jesus hadn’t reached out and pulled him up out of the water).

Learning from Peter, when we keep our eyes on Jesus, not the waves or the storm, we won’t panic or sink under any circumstances, no matter how overwhelming.

That’s why Is. 26:4 tells us to keep trusting Him forever, because He’s an “everlasting rock.” He doesn’t run out of power, strength, or stability.

What’s overwhelming us these days? What’s out there screaming loudly, waving wildly, threatening to sink us emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, and even physically? Physically because all that stress does take a toll on our bodies. What situation, person’s opinion, newscast, self-criticism, or enemy lie do we need to tune out and ignore?

We decide what to focus our attention on and what to let dismay us.

“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you …” Is. 41:10

As much as I love to glue-kiss my family wee ones, I know I can’t and shouldn’t keep my lips upon their cheek for too long. It’s not possible or practical. But we can and should “glue kiss” our minds and hearts on Papa, Jesus, and Holy Spirit God—resulting in long-lasting, eternal, starting-now perfect peace—that is both possible, practical, and wise!