Monday, April 25, 2005

Focus on God

I'm sharing another Purpose-Driven Life Daily Devotional here:

Focus on God
by John Fischer

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. (Matthew 22:37-40 NIV)

Are you ever overwhelmed by so much spiritual advice that you wonder how you can remember all this stuff? Ever return from a seminar or weekend retreat and almost wish you didn’t go because now you have fifteen other things to add to your “to do” list in order to really be a good Christian? Ever feel like you are inundated with too many steps, principles, guidelines, yes, and even purposes, that you can’t keep them all straight?

Well good news, there’s really only one thing to remember: Focus on God.

If reading this devotional every day only complicates your life then unsubscribe; I am doing you a disservice. If they are true to what they should be, these words every day should simplify your life. They should bring you some relief. The success of The Purpose Driven Life is not that it gives people five more things to think about, but it reduces everything to five, and ultimately to only one thing: you were made for God, focus on Him. Phew! Thank you!

Ever notice how when you hear the truth, it’s like a knot coming undone inside you? And conversely, when you hear falsehood, it’s like someone is pulling the knot tighter? The truth lets you take a deep breath; falsehood chokes you.

If you need a degree in order to get it right, then it is probably wrong. The truth “uncomplicates” our lives. St. Peter is not going to be standing at the gate of heaven when you get there and say, “Oh, I’m so sorry, but you were only a four point Calvinist. You have to have all five to get in,” because just inside that gate are a bunch of children who got in by being… well… children. If a child can’t get it, then it’s not the truth. Incidentally those children are there because they got one thing right: God is their Father and they are at His mercy. Focus on God.

Even the two great commandments Jesus gave us (quoted above) come down to one, because if you love God, you will love your neighbor. He gave us the second one to show us whether or not we were doing the first, as John later wrote: it’s impossible to love God and hate your neighbor (1 John 4:12, 20).

So focus on God. Get that one right and you’ll get all the rest. Phew!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Donna,  that is a good devotional this morning. I am glad I subscribed to it because I enjoy reading it. Have a great day now. Thanks for the comment in my new journal. Helen

Anonymous said...

This is sooooo true.....If we love Him, we will obey and do His will and work for Him.  I try to pray that I will know His will and that I will have the desire to do it.  If you focus on Him, I suppose all that will fall right into place.

Sonya

Anonymous said...

This was good.

Anonymous said...

A very easy lesson to remember "Focus on God".  That is all you really need to do, all the rest will fall into place.  As you know from my journal, I've been reading a Purpose Driven Life and writing entries on each chapter.  The book is a blessing.  Thanks for posting this.  It's a wonderful entry!!  (((hugs)))