Focus

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. I’ve never minded thinking about things – I’ve enjoyed it. But it seems like ever since liver disease came along, all my thinking has been compounded, for both good and bad. I think a lot about liver disease, and living with it, and transplant, and what that will be like. I think about parenting in general, and home schooling and marriage and spirituality. I think about my blog, my house, my to-do list. I think about a lot of stuff.

We all do.

It seems like with all that thinking going on all the time, I’ve had a hard time focusing. I’ve never felt the need before to have a big purpose to my life, or at least not to think about my purpose. But with all these things in my mind, and all of it seeming important to me, how does it all fit together? Looking at all of these things as individual pieces that I must tackle one at a time seems overwhelming. I am just one person, but that is what all of those things have in common: ME.
So how do they all fit together? What is my purpose?

If I had one purpose to think about instead of all those other things, my brain could get a little rest. Thinking about focus and purpose, I remembered a verse from one of my favorite books, Ecclesiastes. After 12 whole chapters of making sure the reader knows that pretty much anything a human being can find to spend time doing is temporary and meaningless, the author sums it all up by saying, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” Well that is a relief. The ‘whole duty of man’ (or woman, in my case) summed up in 6 words!
Sadly, my relief is short lived. I had a suspicion, and quick web search confirms there are over 6,000 commands in the Bible!

So much for focus.

However…I soon remembered Jesus addressed this issue when asked about God’s commands: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” – Matthew 22:36-38

Ahhh…now there is something to bring my purpose into focus. Something I can apply on a daily basis. It’s not simple. No, in fact it is pretty complex – it applies to every aspect of my life, from the moment I wake up, until the moment I go to sleep, and every little thought, word or deed in between. But it is a great place to start. It’s very straightforward, very applicable. And while the command itself may not be simple, obeying it simplifies my daily life and thinking patterns. And that is a very good thing.