W.A.I.T. Part 12: Don't Lose Focus, Keep Your Eye on the Prize

Hebrews 12:1-2 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Each and every one of us endures distractions over the course of daily life. We have meetings, work, community events, dinner engagements, and family obligations, just to rattle off a few on the never-ending list. What we must learn, though, is to toss these distractions aside and focus on God. If He is the one guiding our steps, we need to focus on Him in order to remain on the path He has set forth in order to thrive and flourish. As the writer of Hebrews said, we must "throw off everything that hinders."
The person who wrote the hymn "Come Thou Fount" obviously knew what it was like to feel distracted. Why else would he lament, "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above," if it was not for dealing with distraction from God? The City Harmonic also discuss our tendency for wandering hearts in their song "Fell Apart": "Put me back together I fell apart. You are Creator. You understand my heart. Mine is prone to wander, I feel it everyday. Put me back together. Won't you find a way." I can definitely relate to the lyrics I've presented because my heart has strayed due to my inability to stomp out the distractions in my life.
Ridding our lives of distractions to God is no easy task. It could mean sacrificing some earthly enjoyments, whether it's a group of friends that are more focused on partying than walking with God, or choosing to skip the premiere of a movie in order to get some alone time to read the Bible. Maybe it's time we limit our internet surfing, video game playing, or marathons of our favorite television program. Sometimes it's not always clear cut why we're distracted from God. We might think that our gatherings with other Christians are always beneficial, but if there is excess strain on your schedule because you are trying to meet these obligations, maybe it's time to start saying "no" a little more frequently. God should be our priority and the central focus of our lives, not an afterthought.
Back when I was training for my marathon, I made that the central focus of my life. I would schedule my entire day around when and how far I would run. Much like my marathon training, I must approach life with a singular focus. Instead of running being at the center, though, having eternal life with Jesus needs to serve as my primary goal and focus.1 Corinthians 9:24-27 presents a vivid picture of  how we must train ourselves: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." Our goal of eternal life with Jesus should never be far from our minds. If our lives are centered on Him, we will thrive and have it become more apparent to others that we are children of God.
Jesus is the only one who can fill that empty void in our hearts, so why not focus our lives completely on Him? If we are focused on Him, we're less likely to allow our sinful hearts to be tempted, or to easily fall for the scams of the insincere. The City Harmonic reminds us in their song "Fell Apart" that, "You're something real in a world of fake," with the "you're" referring to Jesus. Why not gravitate to the only real thing in this world? He is in fact in control of everything and you will find peace of mind the more you meditate on that fact. This can be difficult to fathom when enduring hardships in life, though. These hardships can distract us from the fact that God is utilizing our circumstances for a greater good.  But one can thrive amidst hardship by focusing on the eternal, not the earthly. Without hardships, we wouldn't learn to fight for the cause of Jesus. At the end of my life, I want the words of Paul from 2 Timothy 4:7 to hold true: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."