Focus

Most of us have goals in life. We have ideas of where we want to be a few months or years from now or what changes we want to make in our lives. Some goals we make are short term and some are long term. Goals are great to make. They make us look at our lives and really think about what we are doing and what we should be doing. But sometimes when we get so focused on our long term goals, we can miss what God wants to do in us and through us right now.

I have spent much of my life in this state. Almost every long term goal I make is about trying to get to the next step in life. My goals aren’t always bad ones, but I can be too focused on where I want to be that I am not paying attention to where I am. This leads to a lot of waiting around. I had a goal of trying to “get through” school so I could move onto what I really wanted to be doing. Waiting. After school, my goal was to “get through” the time leading up to being married. More waiting. After that, we were living in the U.S. and my new goal was to “get through” that temporary job and living situation so I could finally be in Guatemala. Even more waiting. Since we have been here in Guatemala, my goal was to (again) “get through” another temporary living situation so things can be permanent, I can finally be where God wants me to be, and I can start what He has called me to do here. Still waiting. I haven’t done much with these times of waiting. They were just spent trying not to go crazy while waiting. But I have learned that...

This waiting time isn’t meant to be wasted time

Waiting is difficult. I have my own goals and plans and waiting is not part of them. It is often so difficult because that isn’t where my heart is, but that doesn’t mean I am not supposed to be there. God has different plans than I do and waiting can be part of His plan to do great things in and through me. When I focus on where I want to be instead of looking at where I am, I waste much of this time of waiting; time where God wants to work in me, but I am not paying attention.

How many times have I missed opportunities that are right in front of me because I am focussed on my goals and where I wish I could be right now?

Am I missing what God has for me right now? God has placed me here. It isn’t a surprise to Him that I am living in this house in Guatemala. I know I am where God wants me so I should be anxious to see how He wants to use me each and every day and what He is trying to teach me while I am here instead of only looking forward to what is coming next. I should be living in each moment asking God what He wants me to do RIGHT NOW.

The focus is not where I want to be or who I want to be. I need to just focus on God and he will lead me to where he wants me to be as the person he wants me to be in his timing.

Here are some questions I am trying to ask myself as I make large goals:

• Is God my focus in these goals? 
• Is God leading me to make these goals? 
• Am I dreaming big? Am I setting God-sized goals that I can’t possibly accomplish on my own apart from God? 
• Am I taking these goals seriously while also being flexible for God to change them as he sees fit? 
• Are my short term goals leading me toward my long term goals or away from them? 
• Am I still living right now? Just because I have long term goals doesn’t mean I should only focus on those.  
• Who can help to hold me accountable to follow through with the goals I have set?

                                                           ~Krishauna