~ Focus! ~

[Lani]

Philippians 3:12-16

12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.
16 Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.



“Paul wrote, “I press on toward the goal of the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14 (NRSV)




Recently, my wife and I took a seven-day cruise from Vancouver, Canada, to three ports of call in Alaska. One day the sea was very rough, with up to 30-foot waves. The ship, which had been previously stable, began to pitch quite violently. It was difficult to avoid falling. Some passengers became seasick. I was in our cabin reading when I started to perspire and felt nauseated – signs of seasickness.

Soon I remembered a remedy to help cope with seasickness; God to the deck and focus on a point on the horizon, far from the boat. I did this and immediately began to feel better. Somehow, by focusing on something far away, I was less physically affected by the movement of the ship. The ship was still tossing, but I wasn’t sick and somehow felt more stable.

In a similar way, we can become embroiled in our immediate circumstances and problems. As we cope with life’s pressures, big and small, we sometimes forget to trust first in the Lord. Whenever we encounter heavy seas in life, we can know that by focusing on God’s love and faithfulness we will be able to weather whatever storms come our way.



Prayer: Dear God, we turn to you to safely guide us. Help us to discern your will and to follow it. Amen

Prayer Focus of Day: Those who make their living on the water

Thought for the Day: To remain stable in life’s storms, focus on God.

Story shared by: D Warne (Canada)
Source: Upper Room Daily Devotional: 10/2/11