Focus
Our gym group class had a challenge for the past six weeks. Today we were weighing in, seeing how much weight we’ve (they’ve) lost (I gained – blame it on the weather; vetkoeks and stews wayawaya). We were also measuring muscles around the body, not much change there for me either. But I have a thigh gap, so yay!
While discussing with my trainer, we agreed that focus, or lack thereof, was the reason behind such results. She resolved that with our next eight-week challenge, she’d do more to keep us focused, or as she put it, to keep our eyes on the prize.
This got me thinking about a Scripture I taught earlier this week which addresses the issue of focus. Now I’m one person who easily loses focus. Not in an attention disorder kind of way, but I easily panic when things take an unexpected turn and therefore easily get distracted. Like Peter who moved his focus from Jesus to the waves and began sinking, I find myself sinking a lot when I’m fixated with what’s going wrong instead of where it is I’m going. Once focus is lost, I then stop doing what I’m supposed to be doing in order to get where I’m going since my attention is now completely fixed on what’s wrong.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Paul here is teaching the church how to stay focused. There are two things going on, but only one deserving their attention, what’s going on inside. You can’t really see what’s going on inside so it’s pretty hard to focus on it when you can see all the damage going on on the outside. Paul is referring to how are bodies are dying, so we could assume that he was also speaking about the workings of an illness. If you’ve ever been sick, you know how hard it is to ignore pain; to simply not focus on what it is communicating to you and instead focus on what God is doing on the inside of you through His Word. But if I’m to make it out of any circumstance with my faith intact, that is what is called of me. Later, he is to say that we walk by faith and not by sight (chapter 5 verse 7), giving the key to staying focused; not depending on what you see, but rather being anchored on what is promised.
He then goes on to explain the unseen of what the seen achieves. These visible troubles, difficult circumstances and challenges are working in us to actually glorify us, to make us better. James will say we should rejoice when facing trials because the testing of our faith results in us being mature and complete (see James 1:2-4). Then he addresses how temporary these trials are. Something that is here today and tomorrow is gone surely doesn’t deserve our attention and focus.
Of course Paul is strictly talking about our final destiny, eternal life. But the principle applies to goals and dreams as well. We hardly aim to have what we already have or to be what we already are. Our goals are always ahead of us, sometimes beyond us, and they have an element of being unseen. But it’s important to visualise what isn’t physically visible yet in order to relentlessly pursue it. The dream first must live inside of you. Then you need to focus on it, keep your attention on it, regardless what your physical eyes will continue to see. If it is a lighter well-toned body you’ve envisioned, you’ll have to skip the fast food and junk you see for the flat stomach nobody else’s sees. You’ll have to brave the cold and rain for the biceps that only exist in your head.
So revive the vision today, remember why you started, then go. And when trouble comes, fix your eyes on where you’re going, not what’s going on.
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