"My dad always taught me to stay focused," the twenty-something contestant on Fox’s "Are You Smarter than a Fifth-Grader," said, as she stopped the play. "$25,000 is enough for me."
We’ve driven up Boulder Canyon road into the Colorado mountains and seen mountain climbers hanging from the rock face above us.
Jesus "set his face like flint" towards Jerusalem. (Luke 9:51) What’s the commonality? Focus. The woman, the mountain climber, and the Son of God understood how to resist distraction.
The contestant’s father’s words flashed brighter than the glaring game board. The climbers move with careful attention to each toehold, toward the pinnacle. The man of sorrows kept walking toward the place of deepest sorrow–and greatest victory.
What helps you stay focused? These examples help me. Money is not the ultimate good, goals are worth striving for, and sometimes we choose to walk into deep pain in order to gain substantial victory.
Father, we need grace today, in the midst of myriad distractions, to stay focused on your path for our life.