Keeping A Clear Focus & Steadfast Direction

With the myriad of daily distractions around us, it is easy to lose our way. Our goals become fuzzy, our achievements seem unimportant, and our creativity lags.

Isn't that just like the enemy of our souls to keep us from enthusiastically using the gifts and talents that God has given us. So many times I've heard the words from fellow writers: "What's the use?" "Seems like a waste of time?" "Who's really going to notice or care?"

Do we need a cheerleader team cheering us on? It would seem so or else tweeting, blogging, and facebooking wouldn't have risen to the numbers they have in such a short period of time. Since the beginning of time everyone has asked at one time or another: Does anyone know my name? Does anyone care about what I am doing?

The Good News is that we have a heavenly host of witnesses cheering us on, led by the King of Kings himself. It is to Him that we are accountable for "finishing well the job he gave us to do."

So how do we Keep Clear Focus and Steadfast Direction?

1. Ask: "Ask me and I will tell you some remarkable secrets about what is going to happen here" (Jeremmiah 33:3 TLB).

We all want God to speak to us directly and he is trying to do just that through our inner convictions, visions, or dreams. Most often he speaks through Scripture--leading us exactly to the verses we need to read. Sometimes he speaks through another person, or preaching, or worship.

We must embrace the challenge of struggling with our own life issues and we must take the risks involved in making important decisions that will help us stay on the straight and narrow path designed for us. Ultimately, we have to walk that road by ourselves. (Charles Ringma, Life In Full Stride)

2. Believe: "O Lord God! You have made the heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you. You have all wisdom and do great and mighty miracles; for your eyes are open to all the ways of men, and you reward everyone according to his life and deeds" (Jeremiah 32:17,19 TLB).

We must seek God's participation and empowerment for the task. "Activism should not only be sustained by prayer. It also should be born out of prayer. In prayer we listen to God's heartbeat and seek his will. In prayer we commit ourselves to do God's bidding, no matter how difficult or challenging that may be. In prayer we seek the specifics of our action in the world." (Charles Ringma, Seek the Silences with Thomas Merton)

3. Covenant: "And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, promising never again to desert them, but only to do them good. I will put a desire into their hearts to worship me, and they shall never leave me" (Jeremiah 32:40 TLB).

What possesions/gifts we have are not simply for ourselves. "All we have comes from God's beneficence. God entrusts these good gifts to us in order that we might worship our Creator and Redeemer, bless those within our sphere of responsibility and care, and share with others, particularly those in need." (Charles Ringma, Whispers from the Edge of Eternity).


The future is not ours. It is God's. But God has called us to freedom. In freedom we can hope, pray, and work in relation to what lies in front of us. Freedom and hope open us to the surprises that will be coming our way from a loving God who only wants the best for us.