A New Focus

Here is my sermon from this morning.

Here is my column from this morning:

Like many of you, I am busy. Some of you are probably a little bit busier than I am. I am probably a little busier than some of you. For many of us, it probably depends on the day. Busyness can be good. To the store owner, busyness generally means business which is good. Busyness isn’t always a good thing though. Sometimes we find ourselves spending too much time and energy on things that, in the grand scheme of things, don’t really mean a whole lot.

About a year ago I had LASIK surgery. It was an incredible experience. I remember shortly after the surgery that I peeked from under my mask because I was curious how good I would be able to see. For the first time in my life I could see clearly without my glasses. I looked at the birds in the distance and was amazed at how well I could see. The next morning I woke up and out of a 24 year habit, I looked for my glasses. I realized I didn’t have them or need them. I looked at the box on the television and I could see the numbers and they were clear. My eyes could now focus correctly and I could see.

A few days later I was getting ready to do a wedding. A small problem came up. Actually it was a big problem. Even though I could see things at a distance, my eyes hadn’t fully recovered and I wasn’t able to read. I have easily done over a hundred weddings, but don’t quite have the entire script memorized. Even if I had time to memorize the ceremony, it wouldn’t have mattered because I couldn’t read it to memorize it. I generally don’t get nervous before I speak, but I stood in front of the wedding party and the congregation without any notes. I guess my nervous energy, a few years of experience, and the grace of God got me through the wedding.

Focus is a choice and a habit. We can choose to see the birds in the distance and we can pretty much choose if we are able to read the small print. We can choose if we will let the details and duties of life distract us or if we will pour the majority of our time and energy into the things that matter most to us and, even more importantly, the things that matter most to God.

Today I am talking about focus. Next will we will begin a new series that will continue the discussion. By considering what we would do with our life if we only had a month to live – we can focus and change our lives. I’m grateful that you are along for the journey with me.

The best is yet to come…

Craig



Training Update:

Not much time for a workout today. Church in the morning. Benjamin and I sold popcorn in the early afternoon. We had small group tonight. I got the kids bathed after that.

I ran with Samantha, a fast 15 year old girl at four o'clock this afternoon. She is training for the High School State Cross Country Championships in a few weeks and has a good chance to win.

We jogged for a few miles to warm-up. We ran 2K (1.25 miles) at her 4K race pace. We got some water and jogged a half mile. We then ran a half mile at a little faster than her 4K race pace. We jogged a little bit more to recover. We finished with a quarter mile to simulate the end of a race for her. We were flying. We jogged back to our cars. Nice workout (about 5 miles total) on a warm day.