Focus… Focus… Focus…

Father,
Help us. Help us to leave our lives in your hands rather than trying to make things happen. Forgive us when we usurp your authority and your rightful place in our lives. Help us to see and understand the difference between “good” things and “God” things, and only pursue the “God” things. Help me to get things straight again. Help me to do life your way, rather than just what I think I want in any given moment. Help me to delight in You, above all. Thank you for your faithfulness in bringing me thus far, in spite of some of my choices.

In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Psalm 37:3-5 TPT
Keep trusting in the Lord and do what is right in his eyes.
Fix your heart on the promises of God, and you will dwell in the land,
feasting on his faithfulness.
Find your delight and true pleasure in Yahweh,
and he will give you what you desire the most.
Give God the right to direct your life
and as you trust him along the way,
you’ll find he pulled it off perfectly!

I have seasons where I know that I am as aligned as I can be, and others when I choose to assert my will more. This passage is all about aligning yourself with the Lord, trusting Him, and following His ways, as laid out in the Bible. This is not an invitation to religion. This is an invitation to dynamic, living, growing relationship, with the ultimate end of becoming one with Him. As we trust in Him, shown by our actions coming into alignment with what He prescibes for us. Doing what we can to care for our families, obey His Law, and care for others. When we focus on how He as always brought us through, how He has always met us in every need, we will begin to see that His faithfulness is our provision.

Delight in Him. Worship, praise, adore, magnify Him above all circumstances, even when it looks like the world is circling the crapper. Even when your carefully laid up investments do not yield the desired or needed returns because of things outside of your control. Even when it looks like all of our freedom is being sucked out from under us. Even when families have been shredded by political differences or dismembered by medical tyranny. Even as it looks like the world is lurching toward another global war. Our job is to stay in alignment with Him. Stay focused on His faithfulness.

Delight in Him, and see Him fulfill your needs and desires. Let Him make the decisions in your life, make Him Lord. As you trust Him enough to do that, you’ll be able to look back and be amazed at how He worked it out so well for you, such that you couldn’t imagine doing any better.

Is this hard to do? You answer for yourself. I find it very challenging, though some times more than others, honestly. When I get tired and discouraged from what feels like a constant fight to stay in the right place and be aligned with Him, my flesh kicks in and tries to fly the plane. I get more snarky, cranky, and aloof with those who matter most. Then, after I realize what I did in trying to assert myself again, I course-correct and give the stick back to the Lord because I inevitably screw things up worse. It is hard. Simple, but hard. What does that course correction look like in my life? Getting back in the Word and Worship, choosing to pray (both actively and listening) more than I had been for the previous season. It looks like looking at myself in the mirror and honestly admitting where I’ve filled that space and time with other things rather than God, then stopping filling that time and space in ways that are less beneficial. It looks like facing the fact that I’d wandered off again, and turning around and calling out for my Abba once more. I am in that place again. Honestly, much of the last 2-3 months, I have been writing these on autopilot. Purely an intellectual exercise because I had committed to writing one every week. I apologize for that. I am recommitting to getting my head and heart back in proper alignment with Him.