The Power of Focus

by Bradley Davidson, Personal and Professional Coach

It was 2:00 a.m. The heavy sleet-snow mixture pelted the big black
funeral hearse I was driving down the stretch of the dark interstate
highway. The headlights of the hearse tried to pierce the white sheet of
winter storm but instead reflected off the whiteness, nearly blinding me.
I couldn?t see where I was going. I was in the middle of nowhere, alone.
I was 19 years old and I was scared.

When I was a college student in a small town in central Oklahoma, I
worked part-time at a local funeral home. Being the most junior member of
the staff (and, shall I say, the most na?ve), I was always the first
choice of staff members to make the ?middle-of-the-night? calls. I had
been sent to Oklahoma City to retrieve the remains of a deceased person.
The winter storm had just begun when I drove the ?first call? hearse
from the funeral home parking lot to begin my unforgettable trek to
Oklahoma City. By the time I began my journey home, the winter storm was
hitting full force.

As I was driving through the snowy, icy blanket, I kept thinking of all
the terrible things that could happen to me. Because I couldn?t see, I
could drive off the highway and be trapped in a snowy embankment for weeks!
(No, I was not a drama major!) Or, I could pull over to the side of the
road and wait for the storm to subside but I might not be noticed by a big
truck and be hit from behind. My heart raced. My choices were limited. I
was in danger. My heart was beating out of my chest!

Then, I realized that, if I put my headlights on the dim setting, I could
faintly see the tail lights of an eighteen-wheel rig just ahead of me. I
thought, ?OK, if I can only keep those lights as my focus, I can follow
that truck through the storm.? Then, I realized that, between my hearse
and that truck, there could be dips and curves in the road. So, I thought,
?If I can keep the yellow strip in the center of the road (barely visible
just over the front left corner of the car hood), I can stay on the
road.? For the next hour, I focused on the comforting red lights of the
truck ahead and watched the yellow line in the road. I (and my passenger)
made it back home safely.

Many times since that experience, I have faced challenging and seemingly
insurmountable goals in my life. I always think back to my experience of
driving in that icy storm. What kept me on course then can keep me on
course now; the power of focus (and a lot of prayer).

What?s Blinding You?

The falling snow and ice blinded me that dark night on the highway. What
is blinding you from your goals? What is preventing you from focusing on
the destination? Many things in our lives can become obstacles to focusing
on what is important, including:

? Poorly defined destination ? We usually know the general
vicinity of where we want to go in our lives but often do not define the
destination clearly enough. This confusion can become a barrier to
focusing on what is important because we may not know our destination.

? Fear ? Fear of failure, fear of success, fear of the
unknown, and other fears can often blind us from focusing on the goals in
our lives.

? Lack of confidence ? Thinking ?I can?t? sometimes
takes over our willingness to focus on what is important. Sometimes these
messages come from within; sometimes they come from others in our life.

? Not knowing how to focus ? The lack of skill in finding and
maintaining the focus prevents many of us from focusing on the goals in our
lives.

The first step is to identify the goal (or the vision), then identify
what barriers are standing in the way of focusing on that goal.

Three Steps to Establishing and Maintaining Focus

Much like my success in navigating the snowstorm and arriving safely
home, achieving your life purpose and goals relies heavily on four key
elements:

- Know your destination even if it is far away. Know where you are trying
to go. Understand the vision and purpose you are trying to realize.
Unless you have the destination clearly in mind, you will not be able to
gauge your progress in getting there. Several tools are available on my
website ([http://www.liveandworkonpurpose.com/]
www.liveandworkonpurpose.com) to help you identify your vision and
purpose.

- Identify the tail lights in your life. Just like I focused on the red
tail lights of the truck ahead of me in the storm, you can identify and
focus on the milestones between where you are and where you want to be. In
other words, set ?step by step? goals along the road that will lead you
to your ultimate purpose. Then, stay focused on them.

- Watch the road. While it?s important to focus on the goal and the
milestones, it?s also important to watch the yellow strip along the
highway of your life. This will help you ensure you are not veering off
course as you move toward your goals. A useful tool for watching the road
is my ?Purpose Foundation Program?, also available on my website.

- Prayer. Constantly asking for direction and help in maintaining faith
and focus is critical.

Maintaining the Focus

Once you?ve established your vision, milestone goals, and understand
where you are in the road, you are well on your way to reaching your vision
destination. Keep your focus on what is important. And remember, the
journey is just as important as the destination. During that terrible
snowstorm, my growth occurred not at my destination, but on the road.

Now, start your engine and get on the road.

Copyright 2008 - Bradley Davidson

Spirit of God: ... Ge 1:2; 1Co 2:11; Job 33:4
Spirit of the Father: ... Mt 10:20
Spirit of Christ: ... Ro 8:9; 1Pe 1:11
Spirit of the Son: ... Ga 4:6
Spirit of knowledge: ... Isa 11:2
Spirit of the fear of the Lord: ... Isa 11:2
Spirit of truth: ... Joh 14:17; 15:26
Spirit of holiness: ... Ro 1:4
Spirit of revelation: ... Eph 1:17
Spirit of judgment: ... Isa 4:4; 28:6
Spirit of burning: ... Isa 4:4
Spirit of glory: ... 1Pe 4:14
Seven Spirits of God?Re 1:4
Breath of the Almighty: ... Job 33:4
Comforter: ... Joh 14:16,26; 15:26
Eternal Spirit: ... Heb 9:14
Free Spirit: ... Ps 51:12
God: ... Ac 5:3,4
Good Spirit: ... Ne 9:20; Ps 143:10
Holy Spirit: ... Ps 51:11; Lu 11:13; Eph 1:13; 4:30
The Lord: ... 2Th 3:5
Power of the Highest: ... Lu 1:35
The Spirit: ... Mt 4:1; Joh 3:6; 1Ti 4:1
Spirit of the Lord God: ... Isa 61:1
Spirit of the Lord: ... Isa 11:2; Ac 5:9
Spirit of life: ... Ro 8:2; Re 11:11
Spirit of grace: ... Zec 12:10; Heb 10:29
Spirit of prophecy: ... Re 19:10
Spirit of adoption: ... Ro 8:15
Spirit of wisdom: ... Isa 11:2; Eph 1:17
Spirit of counsel: ... Isa 11:2
Spirit of might: ... Isa 11:2
Spirit of understanding: ... Isa 11:2

What Would Jesus Do?

I recently read the classic novel, ?In His Steps,? by Charles Sheldon which was written in the early 1900?s and originated the phrase, ?What would Jesus do?? One man and his local church decide to answer the call to base all their decisions on the simple phrase, ?What would Jesus do?? This started a chain of events that affected people throughout the nation. I felt challenged myself as I read the book. Many of you, like me, want to be more like Jesus, longing to line up everyday life with the Word of God and actions of Jesus. Seeking Him and His will are important to you.
While we can certainly make a difference by doing good works and teaching the way Jesus did, the more important question might be, ?What did Jesus do?? Before you start naming all His works, let me sum it up with one scripture interwoven in much of Jesus? teachings.
?For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.? John 6:38 NKJV
Reading the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John paints a picture of the fact that there is no particular pattern that can be drawn and followed by studying the life of Jesus. He simply did what Father God asked Him to do each day. It never shows Him making major plans; He simply went to the place God sent Him and touched the people God told Him to touch. Some places saw all people around healed and delivered; other places only a select few. Instead of speculating and trying to pinpoint why, we need to take this example and follow it. While making your plans, take time to say, ?Father what would you have me to do?? We need this type of direction or else we will end up trying to do everything and burn out or be overwhelmed and do nothing.
So now I want to act like Jesus and take every day situations to the Father the way Jesus did. For example, my husband has had a bad day at work. While I try to be encouraging and positive, I quietly ask God the best way to help my husband deal with work. Or let?s say my church needs extra help during a special event. I should take time to pray and ask God where He needs me. Many times He will say to go and ask where I am needed, which will probably be the nursery. Am I listening? Do we really take time to ask the Father what to do?
Another question came to mind while reading this book: ?What would Jesus have me to do?? This question bears more on the direction and purpose in my life than on everyday events. Is my life in line with the will of God in every aspect? Am I willing to seek what God would have me to do or am I seeking what is comfortable and familiar? Am I following His path for my life or my talents, gifts, or what I think is expected of me? I challenge you to prayerfully look at all these questions.
Many times we think we are too busy in our lives to ask but we don?t realize the blessings we are missing. God will order our steps so that we can prioritize what we are doing and we will end up with time to spare. Sometimes we cannot answer the question ?What would Jesus have me to do?? because we don?t set aside time to pray and listen. Jesus often went alone to pray. God wants to change things in our lives but can?t because we haven?t set apart time to be in His presence, pursuing Him.
God has new opportunities to minister for some while others are being asked to set everything down and deal with life issues. Many times opportunities that God has for us will not open up until we deal with these issues.
The parable of the 10 foolish virgins found in Matthew 25 shows us an example of someone not prepared who didn?t take time to ask what they should do. They were not prepared and the door was closed; they had not taken time to find out what they should do. Seeking God will prepare us for the next thing in our lives. What would Jesus do? What did Jesus do? What would Jesus have me to do?

Understanding God's will for our lives. That sounds so deep indeed. But today a couple of random yet profound thoughts rose to the surface. In the midst of our pursuit to know God better, we can sometimes overlook the simple and rather obvious things about His character. These are just a few that brought me great gain on one single day:

1. God has already spoken and I merely need to practice listening to Him. We often say such things as "God is speaking to me" or "I need to wait for God to speak to me." Well, He reminded me today that He has already spoken and it is I who needs to be working on my listening skills. All things in my life are already done. I need only to hear Him telling me where and how to respond.

2. Underneath anger, fear, doubt, unbelief, unforgiveness, frustration, disappointment, discouragement, hatred, jealousy, all other negative emotions are our answers. Thoughts, suggestions, and ideas turn into actions. Therefore, we should be meditating on those things which will bring about positive results instead of those which will lead to destruction within (anxiety, heartache) and without (lack).

3. Just do it. We are a nation of talkers, but action still speaks louder than words. If you want to see something change, then we need to get up and move something. Quite literally, it is merely a matter of moving our limbs and mouths. Some times prayer even becomes the excuse of the day. At some point it is even necessary to get off our knees to start making an impact for God.

4. God wants my life to be different and special so His glory is manifested to others who still need to know Him and His character. If I continue to show mySELF, then people will miss meeting Him. Wes Morgan's song "It's My Pleasure" really brings this to light...and the song is downright wonderful!

There is still some day left so it's likely I'll be back here with more Life Lessons from the Master Himself.

And you shall take on the Spirit of Jesus. And you shall be obedient in every way, even in suffering. And you shall sing pure praises from your pure heart unto the Lord. Never again is the Bride going to practice deceit, the Bride will be just like her Lord for It is enough for the disciple that he be like his master, and the servant as his Lord. (Matthew 10:25)

Thus saith the Lord verily I say unto you, except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as the little child, same is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3-4) I?ve had the most special time of ministering the message of the Kingdom of heaven to children and how wonderful it is to behold such faith children put in the message they hear; they hold on to each word as if their entire life depends on it. Children have such a wonderful strength of obedience to parents, teachers and even instructors; they are just willing to do just as instructed of them at all times through a remarkable strong spirit of faithfulness. But just as children put total faith in the gospel when it is preached to them, so it is expected of the bride to yield completely to God in every way. The bride is expected to yield to each word of God knowing that her life depends on it. Man shall not live by bread alone by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. The bride will put such faith in his word without fear, fear, fear? fear destroys faith and set the heart wondering; never yield to fear but put on divine faith. Do you know how many times the words DO NOT FEAR appears in the Bible? It appears 165 times and this means to us that God says to us each day not to fear but put on the Spirit of pure faith and obedience and to yield to the Holy Spirit.

And as I watched in the visions behold thick darkness covered all the earth and I saw the saints of God being lifted up accepted into glory. The Lord is coming soon for his own and the disobedient shall surely not make it to heaven with him, check it out from Psalm 5:4-5. Yield to the Lord through the Spirit of total obedience and heaven will be yours.

Teach me your truth O divine Spirit; tell me of the things that you want me to know. Guide me in the path of the Lord.