“I don’t focus on what I’m up against.
I focus on my goals, and try to ignore the rest.”
Venus Williams
Do you ever feel like you wasted your day? Having started with the intention of knocking our two or three goals, then as your morning goes by you still need to do it. At the end of the day your checklist is unchecked.
I believe that we all have a mission in this life. Whether is to love and serve God, more to get married and raise a family or to focus on a career. But for the most part, we lack a personal mission or clearly defined purpose. These need a more focus, and a specific point to aim to.
I love the focus story in Luke 5:17-26.
One day while Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and teachers of religious law were standing nearby. These men seemed to show up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem. To see Jesus and His healing power.
Some young men were carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus but they couldn’t reach Him because the crowd was too large. So they went up to the roof took of some tiles, and then lowered the paralyzed man on his mat down to Jesus. Jesus said to the man, “Your sins are forgiven.”
But the Pharisees and teachers said to themselves, “Who does He think He is? That’s blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins.”
Jesus knew what they were thinking, so He asked them, “Why do you question this? It is easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven, or take up your bed and walk?” He proved that He the Son of God and was giving authority to forgive sin. Immediately, as everyone watched, the man got up, picked up his mat and went home praising God.
This is an excellent example of what happens when people have a clearly defined purpose and focus on a solution rather then complaining and feeling hopeless.
The man’s friends focused on a good mission to get their friend to Jesus. They started with a lot of faith in Jesus and loved their friend, they took kinetic action, and the results were that their friend was forgiven and healed.
Knowing our purpose and sustaining our focus is essential to living an intentional life. This is how to can say yes to a life full of meaning rather that spending out time on distractions.
The power of focus helps us prioritize our goals, stay on track, and progress towards achieving them.
The power if focus is like the energy of the sun through a magnifying glass. Every third-grade boy knows that when you focus sunlight through a magnifying glass on something that it can burn.
A clear sense of purpose lets us focus on what matters.
From Pity to Praise 