Pray for Focus

Welcome to a new year. I pray your season of celebration has been a good one. By now, I suspect you have moved past the Christmas decor and empty fudge tins to concentrating on what the next twelve months might bring. How does one prepare for what we hope will be better than the past? Pray. Pray for God to lead you and me toward who He wants us to become and what He has planned for us to do. In essence, we pray for focus.

It’s not just a good idea, it’s a perceptive pursuit. Solomon, the man known to us as the wisest in human history, made this suggestion:

Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Proverbs 4:25

What does Solomon mean by calling us to look straight ahead?

According to biblical scholars, Solomon is referring to that which is straight in front of us, the right things, possessing a simplicity of aim, or singleness of motive. In other words, the king writes of the importance of setting God and His ways directly before us as our solitary focus. Fixing your gaze directly before you directs us to make seeking Him, knowing Him, and following Him our sole aim and primary ambition.

In everyday life, meeting this goal begins with prayer.

Maybe you feel like this is never going to work for you. Suppose you have tried but your thoughts run wild before the clock has moved forward ten minutes. How can you and I work toward placing God before us and looking straight ahead to right things? We start by praying for the focus we need.

Pray for what to focus upon. Often that is found in Scripture.

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. Colossians 3:2

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. Psalm 1:1-5

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Philippians 4:8

I encourage you to pray these elements over your own life. Spurgeon once wrote, No one meanders into the kingdom of God. Neither does a person make God her aim without being intentional.

Once what you are to focus upon becomes more clear, pray for the ability to stay the course, with your eyes, heart, and mind gazing straight ahead. Friend, allow me to pray for focus in your life today.

A Prayer for Focus

Lord Jesus,

I pray for my friend to make You her sole aim this year. I thank You for Your word which makes the right way to take clear. Today, I ask that You give my friend insights into Who You are and what You want her to be about. Help her to make time. Make Yourself clear. Give her insights she could not know whithout spending time with You, Also, make her aware of that which tugs at her thoughts and desires to move her off course. Give her Your strength and Your courage to keep steady her gaze on You. Make her aware of Your presence and activity in her very life. Help her know You love her and desire to be the delight of her life.

In the Name of Jesus,

Amen

XOXOXO

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You can meet Cheri on the She Yearns blog for more truth-saturated, Gospel-centered encouragement like this:

Best 5 Ways to Pray for Your Husband

Podcast #59

Studies show that most Americans believe in prayer and pray for those close to them. But what would happen if we really got serious about praying for our husbands and learned how to do it more effectively? Oh sure, we pray about the crisis for today and the issues at hand. But what about their character? How about faithfulness? Overall joy? Some gentleness? And their willingness to follow the Lord? There is so much we are leaving on the table by NOT accessing what we have been given simply because we are not praying.

That’s what we are talking about in this episode of the She Yearns Podcast today. There is so much available in Scripture for us to utilize as we pray that we might not recognize. I have just pulled out a sampling of options. Make these your own. Think of them in broad categories and then get specific for your own situations.

We could not possibly get everything on one episode of the podcast, so I will be making more resources available on this topic on the blog and possibly other resources. Check in with us on social media to see what is coming and what might be helpful to you.

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Thank you for listening.

Cheri