Don't Lose Focus

Don't Lose Focus
by Mike Barres

Years ago, I realized that it is really hard for me to watch television and talk with my wife. I would begin to talk with her, and then when she started talking to me, I would begin watching the television again. I would lose my focus in the conversation. Now when we begin to talk, we turn the television off.

It's hard to keep our focus on the important things in our lives -- conversations with our spouses is just one example, here are a couple of others that may be even more dangerous.

In the news recently, a story mentioned the possibility of a train engineer using his phone for text messaging just prior to that train wrecking. This seems to be a common and growing problem with text messaging. There have been problems with text messaging during school by students. There have been reports of people text messaging while they are driving -- some states have laws that prevent using cell phones while driving for calling or for "texting." These kinds of things make it difficult to stay focused on the task at hand -- driving safely. It is easy to get distracted.

Recently a friend told me that he was driving down a road that ran along a river. Looking out of his window, he saw someone catching a fish. He was so interested in the fishing that he wrecked his truck. He lost his focus on his driving.

The Holy Spirit has said:
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2 NKJV).

The phrase that says, "looking to Jesus" is often translated "fixing our eyes on Jesus." We must keep our focus on Him. We can't lose focus on the Lord!

But it is so easy to take our eyes off of Jesus. So many things can distract us these days. We are reminded to "lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us." Losing our focus causes us to get tangled up in things that we shouldn't and worry about things we over which we have no control.

The consequences of my friend wrecking his truck were serious and could have been deadly, all because he lost focus. The same is true with each of our lives. Let's keep our focus on Jesus. Let's take our relationship and walk with Him seriously.

We must learn to discern the distractions that the devil brings along and ignore them and say "No!" to them. These distractions may be sin, they might just be activities that take us away from things that we know that the Lord wants us to do, or they could be worries about things going on around us. However, we must stay focused on Jesus, His Word, and His Kingdom!
"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness ..." (Matthew 6:33), "looking unto Jesus" (Hebrews 12:2).

http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200810/20081011_focus.html
(c) 2008 Mike Barres