19/06/2009 by John Marsden.

Stay F.O.C.U.S.E.D. 4

Utilize God’s power.Read Philippians 3:20-21Please don’t misunderstand what Paul is saying to the Philippians and us. He’s not telling us to look for the return of Christ and passively wait to be changed. Put in context he’s reminding us that the same power source that will change our earthly bodies into heavenly one is available to right now. This isn’t a call to resignation of our weak flesh it’s a reminder to refocus on our ultimate object and draw on his power for life change.

Whatever goal God calls you to you will only be able to accomplish it with his power. Devote yourself to asking for his help to reach whatever target he’s called you to go after. He will give you the power you need because he’s on your side. He wants you to take all those little steps that will result in your completeness.

Have a great day

 John

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19/06/2009 by John Marsden.

Stay F.O.C.U.S.E.D. 3

Consider the outcome of unfocused people.

Read Philippians 3:18-19

The sad fact is that most people live in what one author termed “default mode.” They go through life being acted upon by circumstances or other people, but show little or no incentive to reach for something more. Life is lived for the weekend. Comfort, convenience and luxury are the driving forces behind life. “Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die” is the motto. That’s life in default mode. Even professing Christians fall into this category. I didn’t say genuine. I said professing. If you come across a church person who lives for self - their greatest concern is pleasure - reconcile yourself to the fact that they’re not living for Christ and have never really known him. That’s the distinction. Genuine believers consistently seek to live for Christ. They give up self-seeking. Christians in name only operate in default mode. Take note and stay away from those models of behavior. Their end is a wasted life. Their focus was on the wrong goal. Really they live unfocused lives.

It was Flight 401 bound for Miami from New York City with a load of holiday passengers. As the huge aircraft approached the Miami Airport for its landing, a light that indicates proper deployment of the landing gear failed to come on. The plane flew in a large, looping circle over the swamps of the Everglades while the cockpit crew checked out the light failure. Their question was this, had the landing gear actually not deployed or was it just the light bulb that was defective?
To begin with, the flight engineer fiddled with the bulb. He tried to remove it, but it wouldn’t budge. Another member of the crew tried to help out … and then another. By and by, if you can believe it, all eyes were on the little light bulb that refused to be dislodged from its socket. No one noticed that the plane was losing altitude. Finally, it dropped right into a swamp. Many were killed in that plane crash. While an experienced crew of high-priced and seasoned pilots messed around with a seventy-five-cent light bulb, an entire airplane and many of its passengers were lost. The crew momentarily forgot the most basic of all rules of the air-”Don’t forget to fly the airplane!                 “From Dropping Your Guard by Charles R. SwindollHave a great day

John 

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