A heart synchronized with God will result in doing God’s will and not what I believe, think, or desire.
One of the scriptures that have impacted me is from the prophet Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Can you imagine what God could do among us as a community, in our personal lives, our marriages, our children, our jobs, with our neighbors, our family members, if only we would focus ourselves in knowing and doing God’s will for our lives?
At times we have more fear and doubt instead of having the certainty and conviction that God will do this, but that’s for lack of focus or, as others could say, vision or purpose.
Let me give you an example of something I heard long ago when I was a Theology student: “What will make our church grow?” that is the wrong question, the right question is “What is holding our church’s growth?” We can ask this same question in different areas of our lives and if you ask and act many things would change and you’d be surprised at what you can discover. Lack of vision or purpose, or focus, prevents growth in any person, group or place; it also prevents progress, and as a result we get used to living in such a way that we don’t want to leave our comfort zone.
When we are focused we identify where we want to be, where we want to end at, what we wish to accomplish and the things or people preventing us from accomplishing our objectives.
The Bible gives us many examples of men and women that never lost focus and kept their vision. One of those examples from the scripture is that of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, where in chapter three, he wrote: “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” Notice how Paul uses three fundamental phrases: seek those things which are above, set your affection on things above and that our life is hid with Christ in God. Notice the focus and vision Paul had in his life to recognize, in the mentioned verses, the things that prevent the progress and growth of a life according to God’s will. Notice too, how this is individual and communal at the same time, for Paul wrote to the congregation at Colossae.
In the letter to the Hebrews we notice chapter 12 “we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith”.
Finally, Jesus tells us: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
What does this mean for you? What keeps you from doing so? What is your vision? What surrounds you or is in you that causes you to lose focus? Discard and Remove are some of the expressions the Bible uses and that we should apply in our lives. We don’t have to be like God’s people in the desert that took 40 years to arrive at the Promised Land when it could have been less time.
