How do I focus only on God, how do I turn my heart?
I was taught to ‘cast your worries on the Lord’, ‘to invite him into your struggle’. Yes that is all good and right and Godly. And also, he wants our full heart, our full focus. I never understood that we as Christians need to constantly be examining our heart.
I was waiting on the Lord to take these worries away from me. I did not understand that God can not take something away that I’m holding so tightly. My grasp was fully on my worry. I was white knuckling this worry, while asking God to take it away. I became weary after waiting and waiting on God. Thinking about it came up much more often than my prayers for God to take it away. Holding on so tightly drained my energy.
Jesus felt very strongly that your heart should first and foremost be turned to God, that you can not keep your focus on two things at once. So much so, part of it is word for word in the gospels twice.
First, Luke:
No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
The Pharisees, who loved money heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. He said to them “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.” Luke 16: 13-15
Second, Matthew:
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Therefore I tell you do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear .. Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? .. For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 7: 24, 25, 27, 32-34
First, in Luke Jesus is talking about money and God. He is clear that you can not serve both. Continuing the reading in this passage you understand why Jesus was calling money out specifically, the Pharisees loved it. Jesus was calling out a specific temptation his audience struggled with.
The more important part of this verse is “God knows your hearts.” God knows when our focus is away from him, when we are trying to put our focus on two things at once. Jesus is warning us that this is detestable in God’s sight, the temptation you are struggling with God destests. He does not want it in our lives, and gives us a simpler way to live, to focus solely on God and turn our hearts towards Him.
Next, Matthew records Jesus’ words exactly as Luke. Let’s focus on “you can not serve two masters” this time. Again your focus can not be on two things at the same time. Jesus elaborates on this theme by choosing another temptation: worry.
When I used to read this passage all I heard was “do not worry”, and I added to that by berating myself for still worrying. “Worry doesn’t add a single day to your life, so why do it?” “Each day has enough trouble of its own, do not add to it by worrying” Jesus says all of these things, and also He tells us “our Heavenly Father knows that you need them (food, clothing - the things you worry about)”
Jesus says “Pagens run after all these things” but your God already has it handled for you. Because we believe in God we do not need to worry about tomorrow. Then He tells us how to not worry: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness”.
By God’s righteousness alone, we can lean on His strength to not worry. I was trying to lean on my own strength to do what only God can do. I completely missed the grace of God that is right there in the same passage. Focus on Him and He will direct our way.
So practically, how do you do that? How do you “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” when life consumes you?
I have learned to look at my temptation to worry as a ‘red flag’. This red flag warns me that my focus has fallen away from God, my heart is filling up with worldly desires to control a situation that God already has.
My worry is a red flag that my focus is at the very least divided between God and something else, and my heart is choosing to trust in myself and my accomplishments or strength instead of putting my trust in God alone.
Worry is a red flag to examine my heart and thoughts behind the immediate concern.
Prior to seeing my worry as a red flag, my thoughts would go something like this: Take my worry for the future for example. I am worried that ‘x’ will happen instead of ‘y’. That is normal. Then I will start making a plan, an elaborate and out of my control, to try to ensure ‘y’ happens. Then I will remember all the times ‘x’ has happened in the past, and make plans just in case ‘x’ happens. All of these situations are out of my control. Yet I am hanging on to them tightly, I am trying to convince myself that ‘I’ve got this’.
After I understood worry is a red flag to turn my heart and focus back to God, these are the steps I now take to turn my focus and heart fully to God.
Examine my worry: write it out, write out the responses to that worry, then prayerfully consider what am I coveting? What is the temptation I am responding to?
For me it is mostly control issues, protection against rejection and hurt. I would rather know what people think of me, know what to expect, not be surprised by other peoples actions. There is absolutely no way I could ever control that, and it would send me into a depression. (When I first began this journey I was mostly told I was prideful, but there are so many other reasons you can give into temptations).
Other Temptations that you can pull your focus away from trusting in God fully:
Emotional: understood by others, needed by others, keep everyone happy, ability to fix someone else, revenge
Family and Relationships, a child’s love or a friends affirmation, identity in a certain social group
Self or Pride: Ability to be in charge or control, being right, praise and worship of others
Approval and Affirmation: Approval from others, not being noticed or desired (shame based), attention from others
Behavior and doing: Following rules and standards, being highly production, a position in career or society, being the best or better than
Materialism: Money, possessions, overly frugal, financial security or prosperity
Physical: physical look, body image, weight, strength
Religious: Spiritual respect, ministry success, a certain spiritual gift
Achievement: Success “self made”, a child’s success, fear of failure, always go above and beyond
Protection: safetly, health, security, control over outcomes, justice
Pleasure: fun, pain avoidance or relief, vacations
There are so many! And lots of these things are good things, when they are coming from a focus and trust in God. It is when you turn these to your first focus and your trust in God comes second. Then you loose that constant deep peace and joy which only comes from the Holy Spirit.
I figure out the temptation behind my worry (of the day). And I say an open handed prayer giving these all up to God.
My prayer is not “God please take away this worry that ‘x’ will happen. And please make sure ‘y’ will happen.”
My prayer is “God, I open my hands and give up control (or other temptation) to you. I give up all my energy I have put into this, and put my trust fully in your plan for my life. Please guide me throughout the rest of this day. Give me the words you want me to say, the texts you want me to write. Bring me the people you want me to interact with today, and give me the strength to resist the temptation to take back control (or other temptation). God I want you to be first in my heart, I want to look to you first before I act, before I speak, before I think. In Jesus powerful name, please give me the strength to follow you today.”
Try a prayer like this today, talk to God and ask for His forgiveness. Ask for Him to fill you with this deep peace and joy that only He can give you. And ask Him to open your eyes and soften your heart to know when you have lost this peace, and need to turn your focus and trust in Him again.
This is a daily, sometimes hourly thing for me, a new pattern I have made in my life. The joy and peace that comes from putting God first in my life is unexplainable. I pray the Holy Spirit will work within you this week and guide you to living a life seeking first God’s kingdom and righteousness.
Stay well friends, JJ