Thoughtful: Focus

One could say that I’m a pretty driven individual, or as one of my friends entitles it, “laser-focused.”  In fact, my top “strength” as identified through a test called StrengthsFinder is exactly that, Focus.  Maybe that’s why I’m struggling so much these past couple weeks as many things that I’ve been focused on in my life are now coming to a close.  The house is sold, we are officially moved, my time at EverGreen will now be very minimal, and my summer class is finished.  This lull in activity will only exist for a short period of time as I start Calvin Seminary next week.

I had the opportunity to attend the Willow Creek Leadership Summit this past Thursday and Friday where something unrelated to any of the speakers became a theme in my heart, “Ryan, What are Rebekah and you about?”  I know this question could seem cliche’ or even goofy at first, but I do think this is the question that plagues my heart during the moments I’m silent enough to listen to it.  Rebekah and I had to get up early Saturday morning for a wedding and I didn’t mean to keep her up all night discussing this question as if we were going to come to a definite conclusion, but I did.  She lovingly and surprisingly engaged the question and agreed that we must answer this…just not at 1:00 in the morning.  She knows that I require a focus, and she knows that an academic pursuit, such as being at the top of my class at seminary, will not suffice.  Knowledge has to walk.

I’m not sure when and how such a difficult question will be answered, but I do know that it is in the silence that I have felt God busy at work answering it.  I see Texts like Micah 6 , Matthew 22 , Matthew 28 , 2 Cor 5 , and others helping to guide us to the answer.  I know that looking at the passions and gifts that God has given the both of us will also help the conversation.  One of my favorite songs right now is Mumford & Sons, “Awake, My Soul.”  The lyrics that always grab and hold me are these: “In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die.  Where you invest your love, you invest your life.”  There are so many places and things to invest our love in, and if we’re not focused the results might be scattered and minimally effective.  What has God given you a passion for, a particular way or place to invest your love, what kind of life are we investing in?  When was the last time we asked these questions…