Single-Mindedness

I was reminded of a great truth today while I was in class. First off today was a day of answered prayer...I was seeking some answers and direction from God this week and today He saw fit to answer all my questions in a fairly clear manner. But one lesson stood out from the rest this morning in classes. It has to do with something of great importance to all of us; Purpose. For a long time many have searched for the answers to our existence; "Why are we here?", and "What is our purpose in life?" are some of the biggest questions one can ask. It is my conviction that I exis on this earth for one thing; to glorify God. In class today we took a look at 2 Corinthians 11:3. In the KJV it reads, "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ."

The word simplicity in this passage refers to a singleness or single focus. Again we are to be focused soley on Christ and soley on glorifying God. Our focus and single pupose must be on Christ. However as this verse warns Satan will try his hardest to remove us from that single-mindedness or single focus. Eve had the focus of "I want to glorify God", but Satan began to divide her focus until she also began to desire a knowledge which she did not have.

So in today's world and life we are called to have one single focus...what other purpose or focus is Satan trying to instill in your life. What shocked me is it often times is something not sinful in itself. Satan doesn't try to shift our focus to being a criminal or a murder; no he is much more subtle. Honestly evaluate your drive and focus in life. Is it "I want to glorify God"? Maybye Satan is trying to divide your focus to "I want to glorify God" and "I want to excel in my workplace" or "I want to make a difference in the world". Interestingly enough these are both good desires yet they can so easily distract us from the single-mindedness we are to have in Christ.

What about me and my fellow students; what is our desire and focus. It can so easily become "I want to glorify God" along with things such as "I want good marks in school" "I want to be respected by my peers". So quickly our focus can be divided and we lose the simplicity or single-mindedness we are to have as Christians.

Here's a hard one for guys my age, often our focus can turn to "I want to find and marry and Godly wife." It is a great desire to have...but it must not become our focus...it must be a part of desiring to glorify God and it must not divide our focus. Paul speaks of this in 1 Corinthians 7:32-34...it is so easy for our focus to be lost. It is more and more becoming my conviction that until I can place my relationship with God over that of my relationship with others and especially my future wife I am not trully prepared for marriage.

We must have a single-mindedness...think of Abraham...if God today asked you to leave behind all you knew, to leave your family, friends, home, church, and all else and go to a place you did not know would you obey? What is your focus and mindset? Do you have a single pupose in life or is it divided? What do you need to surrender to God today?

So yeah...that's just a little of what God was teaching me in class today...what has He been teaching you?