WHERE IS YOUR FOCUS?
by Clint Walker
Fowler First Baptist Church
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.— Phillippians 4:8 TNIV
I am not much of a hiker, but I like to go out walking. Hikers are like my friend Dan, who wandered around with a backpack set-up in the mountains of Colorado for nearly three weeks, occasionally dropping in on a town to get resupplied. Hikers like to talk about fourteeners and getting up in the thin air and looking down on the world.
I am overweight and mildly asthmatic. If I go “hiking” I look for the ratings of 1-2 hikers beside the trail and the word “easy.” I like to get exercise, and occasionally push myself. Hiking sounds like a high-minded goal with a noble end in mind. Walking means I can go at my own pace and look around at things.
Imagine my joy recently when Scott Pittullo asked me to go walking with him on the land he likes to walk, and pray in, up on the ranches overlooking the Valley from the north. I like new places to explore, to slow down, to think, and to possibly even pray a little bit. It was a good time with a good friend. Although, I am afraid I am not good company when I go on walks like this. I tend to get lost in my own world of thoughts and ideas, and become oblivious to everyone around me.
Anyway, one of the interesting things about Scott and I going out and walking around on little trails like this is that we focus on different things. Scott looks for different kinds of rocks. Anyone who knows Scott Pittullo knows he is a rock hound. Anyone who spends much time with me knows I am more of a sucker for plants and flowers as I look around. I counted 5 different kinds of wildflowers on our short walk, as well as different kinds of cactus. I try to figure out what kind of grass is out that way. Somewhere I have a bunch of pictures from Waldo Canyon, up in between Woodland Park and Colorado Springs, of all sorts of flowers blooming along the trail. This interest in flowers and plants is something I got from my father, who made his living as a guide for rafting and fishing along the Rogue River in Oregon, and then as a groundkeeper for golf courses and colleges. Scott likes looking for coyotes. I like looking for deer and antelope. I like listening to hear how many birds I can hear. Scott likes looking for tracks. I am a pastor. I think about how the dry creek beds in Crowley County relate to the wadis of the Middle East and Israel. I suspect at times Scott thinks about some of those things, but also about his Western novels and what it must of have been like to be an Indian here 150 years ago.
Here is my point. We have a choice of how we focus our lives, and what we focus our lives upon. And it is that choice that makes all the difference in whether we are happy or sad, whether we understand the grace and love God has given us or are blind to it, whether we love our neighbor or judge him, and much more. Where our focus is makes all the difference in what we see, what we experience, and what we know. We can see God’s grace and blessing in the middle of the hardships and storms of life, or we can see how awful those times really were and wonder why God let us go through them. We can see the future and changes as opportunities to grow, or we can see things changing and complain and whine about how things are not like they used to be. Where we focus makes the difference. I believe God calls us to focus on hope, to look for the blessings in the storm, and to look forward instead of long for the past.
What is true of our circumstances is true of our neighbors. A lot of Christians have a reputation for being fault finders, and that is a well-deserved reputation. We, as believers in Jesus, have a reputation of playing Mr. Fix-It with souls. There are times when that approach is helpful and necessary. A lot of people have a lot of problems. But I believe that Jesus also wants us to fan the flames of what is good, what is true, and what is beautiful in one another. God wants us to recognize one another’s gifts and strengths, and encourage those. He want us to look at each other and see the ways God has worked in lives, and to help one another identify where God is at work drawing us to Himself. God wants us to look at one another with hope, and encourage one another to build on our God given blessings and strengths. As one of the church fathers names St. Irenaeus said, “The glory of God is man fully alive!” Praise God!
Fowler, Colo. —
