Chapter 2 Excerpt:
Chapter 2 Focus: One Thing I Do

"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Phil 3:13-14).

I am often fascinated to see what motivates people--what brings fire to their eyes and lights up their faces, color to their cheeks. I love to see someone get excited about an idea, a vision, or a dream they want to accomplish.

However, sometimes people are naïve in their expectations. They believe they can just wish something, and somehow God will make it happen. Paul was under no such illusions. His clear vision was coupled with a strong grasp of the reality of hardships, opposition, and heartache that would accompany his pursuit of God's plan for him. But none of those things diverted him from his single-minded focus. Like all of us, he had plenty of responsibilities, but there was only one thing that consumed his heart. He wrote to the Philippian believers, "But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Phil 3:13-14).

What gave Paul such a clear focus on his life's purpose? Earlier in the same letter, he had listed all his accomplishments and titles. He had been the number one man in Judaism, the ultimate corporate climber, the hero of his time, but none of that mattered after he met Christ. He explained, "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord" (Phil 3:7-8).

Paul's response to God's calling, was first and foremost to love and follow Christ himself. like This should be the response of every believer-- not just pastors, missionaries, and church workers. --is first and foremost to love and follow Christ himself. The depth and breadth of our response is shaped by the extent of our awe for the One who is calling us. Os Guinness writes, "God calls people to himself, but this call is no casual suggestion. He is so awe inspiring and his summons so commanding that only one response is appropriate--a response as total and universal as the authority of the Caller."** (Guinness, The Call, p. 30.)

Our delight in the love of God and our passion to please him come from our reverence for the awe-inspiring greatness and grace of God. Christ's call to us, however, is not heard in the midst of silence does not always arrive during silent moments. We have to listen intently because it is uttered may come amid the din of hundreds of other invitations around us. , including opportunities Some of these invitations are to get what we want by having more possessions or money, some promise fulfillment if we climb the ladder of success, and some tell us that we will be genuinely happy only if we have or gain power over others. A few of these messages are clearly seductive and evil, but many numerous others are good things that threaten us or create problems only when they take first place in our lives: the affection of a spouse, the joy of children, the enjoyment of seeing success in business or any other field. If we appreciate these as gifts from God, they retain their proper place, but if they become central in our hearts, they take the place of God and become idols.

This is not a new problem. Through Jeremiah, God lamented the misplaced allegiance of his people,

"My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water" (Jer 2:13).

Without a clear, unmistakable call from God, first to himself a focused relationship with him, and then to the role of his choosing determining exactly what he wants us to do, we desperately try to find vainly search for meaning (we "dig our own cisterns") or we give up and drift in meaninglessness. Some of us are driven "dig our own cisterns" by continually trying to prove ourselves. We are intense about being successful, but not for Christ's sake. We are threatened by failure, so we avoid failure it at any cost. We may work 80 hours a week, compulsively focus on details, or blame others whenever something goes wrong. Others have given up on having any real meaning in life. Even some people in positions of Christian leadership feel deep emptiness and simply go through the motions of ministry. They are bored, without drive, without dreams, and without hope. And others are still trying hoping to find meaning by trying a little of this and a little of that to see if anything stimulates them. Genuine calling is a powerful antidote to the drive to prove ourselves, the emptiness of boredom or discouragement, and the meaninglessness of superficial, scattered activities.

Calling is not about the size of a church, the scope of a ministry, or the bottom line of a business--it is about the heart of God. Many people miss this crucial point. We can get so hung up on building a large ministry or business that we focus on comparing ourselves with others instead of loving and serving Jesus Christ. That's It is a personal and an organizational tragedy. T to forget that the root, the source, and the heart of our calling is that we have been chosen, forgiven, and adopted by God. That We miss it all if we bypass the warm, rich, powerful relationship that must be the center of who we are and what we do, or we have missed it all. Then, without it, all our efforts are only to build our own kingdoms, not God's--to please ourselves, not him.