Focus

I had to drive early one morning to the grocery store to gather supplies for my house and my mom’s (kind of my own version of a suburban combat mission in this season of Covid-19). I was trying to look out the back window at what was behind me. I needed to see if it was safe to change lanes, and it was so very foggy. And I was trying to focus on cleaning the back window to clear my vision. And then I realized as the sun hit at the right angle, that the problem wasn’t the window at all. The problem was actually the rearview mirror. It was covered in smudgy fingerprints that were blurring my vision. In that moment, I realized that I was focusing on the wrong thing. Looking for a solution to something that wasn’t what I needed to worry about. I wonder… how often do we try to clear our vision and try to clear a path and we are focusing on the wrong problem the whole time?

It’s so easy to spend energy and time on the things that appear most urgent. Most loud. Most demanding of our attention. Those loud pieces are often symptoms of what actually needs work.

Looming work deadlines. Absent friends. Hurtful words from those we love. Flat tires. Fussy toddlers. Defiant teenagers. Messy kitchens. Unpaid bills. Piles of laundry. There is always something in our face. Big and little things demanding our full attention.

I believe that the enemy sends things just like this every single day. Distractions. Problems that we spin our wheels trying to solve and then we forget to find the root. We believe what we see is the real issue. Or we don’t have the strength left to dig it out when we finally do see it.

That’s his whole mission, isn’t it? He comes to steal and destroy. Love. Joy. Strength. Purpose. Impact. All that God calls us to is all that he picks away at. He longs to reduce you to a self-doubting puddle. Then you won’t fight against his schemes. You forget who you are and whose you are. You forget that you are worthy… called… full of the same power that raised Jesus and defeated death…heir to a kingdom…loved and known. He plants seeds of doubt. He brings distractions to blur your vision and obscure your path and use up your energy. He can’t take our power, but he will work really hard to make us forget that we have it. Forget that we are made for victory.

Fight.

God doesn’t call us to wasted energies or fruitless trials. He gives us the tools we need to fight worthy battles and gain amazing victories.

The Holy Spirit brings truth and clarity of vision. We need nothing more than to ask for it. Ask and receive. He will bring us into all truth and give us exceedingly more than we can ask or imagine. Ask what the real problem is when you are frustrated and overwhelmed and nothing seems to be getting better. Find the root and dig it out. Lay it in the sun to dry up and lose its hold on you. Allow the Father to heal the wound it leaves. Real healing and freedom come when we find the root of the issue and address that with the Father.

So fight. Fight against distraction. Fight against powerlessness. See with His eyes. Draw on the strength He gives. Feel His power in your weakest moments.

As you go through your day, look at where you are using your energy. Pause. Breathe. See those things that are screaming in your face and ask if they are the real problems you are meant to solve. And before you spend all of your time trying to clear the back window, check your mirror. Focus on what God is pointing you to today. He has good plans for you.