Articles
Keeping Spiritual Focus
As Christians, we know what we need to think about most in life: 1) God—His greatness,
goodness, power, love, mercy, grace, care and protection. 2) Christ—His life, teaching, death for
our sins, burial, resurrection, ascension, intercession, and second coming. 3) The church—the
privilege of membership in it, our involvement, service, spiritual growth, and worship
experienced therein. These are the things that we want to think about and give priority to in our
lives.
But, we live in a busy world. Life is fast, frenetic, and demanding. We all have to earn a
living, make mortgage or rent payments, car payments, utility payments. We have to buy
groceries, clothes, insurance, and take care of our physical health and that of our families. Our
children (or grandchildren) are involved in a multiplicity of activities, each demanding a piece of
our time and involvement. There are deadlines and expectation of all kinds to be met. In such a
world, how do we keep our spiritual focus?
Consider the words of 1 John 3:1-3. Summarized, John tells us that before we get too caught
up in thinking about the things of this life we need to reflect on God’s love that enabled us to
become His children, to understand that the world does not know us (in the sense that it does not
accept our standards), to remember that something better is waiting for us after this life, and to
keep in mind that with Christ’s second coming we shall be like Him. These exhilarating truths
will enable us to keep our spiritual focus!
~ Hugh Fulford, Speaking from the Heart,
via Steve Higginbotham, Karns Church of Christ, Knoxville, TN.
