The Power of a Focused Life

In review of Proverbs 21:5 it says, “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty”

Bottom Line:

Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.

What this means to me:

This passage in proverbs reminds me that it’s careful planning and hard work that lead to being prosperous. If I get in a hurry, or get lazy and look for shortcuts, I’ll not end up with the best. It will often be lacking.

Therefore If I want God to use me in great ways this year, I’ll need focus. The more focused I am, the more effective I can be; and thus more available for God to use.

There’s tremendous power in a focused life. A diffused light doesn’t have much of an effect on what it touches. But when we focus light, like the sun’s light through a magnifying glass, you can light a piece of paper or grass on fire. If it is focused even more, it becomes a laser. And a  laser can cut through steel.

The same is true with my life. If my goals are directionless, I’ll just drift through without impacting much. But if I can learn to focus my year on a few key goals, then I can make a powerful impact on the world for God.

This verse reminds me, “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5 NLT).

A great example of focus in the Bible is the story in Genesis 24. Abraham was getting old, and his son still hadn’t married. God had promised Abraham that through his own family he would create a great nation through Abraham, which God did. But Abraham’s son, Isaac, still didn’t have any kids. He wasn’t even married yet. So Abraham gave his servant, Eliazar, a goal of finding a wife for his son. Abraham told his servant, “Don’t get a wife from the Canaanite girls who live around here. Go back to my country, to the land of my relatives, and there get a wife for my son Isaac.”

Like all good goals, Eliazar’s was clear. He knew he needed to find Isaac a wife, and he knew exactly what kind of wife to look for. He needed to find a wife from Abraham’s homeland. You’ll never reach a vague goal because you’ll never know if you’ve completed it. Eliazar didn’t have that problem.

For example, if my goal is to be used by God, that’s vague. Even if I make the goal to do more for God, I’ll never really know if I’ve completed the goal.

But if you commit to spending an hour every Tuesday evening sharing with someone or leading a group, that’s specific. I’ll know whether or not I’ve completed it. Those kinds of goals can change my life.

So, it's time to get specific and consider more concrete goals.