Focus Blinds you to Everything Else.

There is a lot of conversation about focus out there today in the church world. I was talking with my friend Terry Deaver from FBC August this morning and we talked about focus. This church focuses on this, that church focuses on that. What's the right focus? Where do we need to focus?

Then I came into the office and read in Luke 14 where Jesus is talking to the religious elite. Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath after asking this question, "is it permitted in the law to heal on the Sabbath?" They didn't answer Him so He healed a guy (He knew they didn't believe it was right for Him to heal on the Sabbath anyway). Then Jesus said, "which of you doesn't work on the Sabbath? If your son or a cow falls into a pit, don't you rush to get him out?"

Here's the thing about focus. When I wear my glasses I can see everything I turn my head to look at. But everything outside the lens is blurry. Focus determines what you're Blind to as much as it determines what you're focused on. Everything outside the scope of your focus exists, but you can't "see it" so it doesn't affect you, it doesn't get in. Which means, we have to be very careful about what we focus on!

Jesus was focused on people. Meeting needs. Compassion. Mercy. Grace. Forgiveness. Instruction. Relationship. The religious leaders where focused on themselves, so it was okay for them to work on the Sabbath, to save a son or cow (interesting pairing there I know!) because it affected them. But they were blind to the needs of others.

What are we, as a church, missing because of our focus? What are we blind to? What is going UNDONE because of what is getting done?

Post Script: I was gonna end there but just had this thought. When I wear my glasses I have to turn my head to change my focus. If I just move my eyes there is a point where things are blurry. When I wear my contacts no matter where my eyes go everything is in focus. We need to be spiritual contact wearers so that we can focus on whatever the need is, not just whatever we happen to be looking at. Pet projects, etc. Perhaps that is why it is good to have people in different areas of ministry. My friend Terry can focus on preaching and leading, while his worship guy focuses on worship, and the children's guy has his own focus. When they all come together they "see" most everything. Individually they may miss a lot. There needs to be a team approach to ministry. Anyone want to join the team?