Refocus

We’ve all been there. We thought about what to do, maybe even took a class or steps in a certain direction, only to find that the plans we thought were possible weren’t going to happen or would take too long. Much like a GPS, we recalculated and went in a different direction—to a different destination. Whether it’s from the good, the bad, or the ugly—if you were redirected because of a good decision such as taking care of family or realigning your life with God, or because of a bad (ugly) decision such as hurt, pain, or desperation—all is not lost; God has placed a calling inside of you that is irrevocable—a desire that may not make sense. But God says: I’ve placed that in you as part of your calling. For many of us, that desire on the inside of you has birthed a business.

Some people believe that if you desire to build a business to support yourself, you are doing something wrong. These people are haters. They hate that you have a passionate drive for “good success” because they believe you should be doing something else with your time, attention, and money, such as giving it to them.

Haters can also be disguised as “worried for you.” Their worry is hate because it’s intended to direct you away from what you are doing with your time, attention, and money. If we give in and lose focus because of them, it means our destiny is starting to slip away and we are drifting back to living by someone else’s desires instead of our own. The Bible says each one has his own gift from God. Pastor Chris Oyakhilome stated, “Keep your attention on God’s vision for your life and refuse to be moved by temporary situations.”

For me, that means living independently of someone else’s desires. It means intentionally shifting my attention away and toward God. Easier said than done.

I believe we first need to redefine what success looks like for each one of us. The Bible says, “This book shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein.” Then the Bible states the effect: “For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” This means that as a result of meditating (plotting your success) day and night, you will make your own way prosperous and have good success, which will ultimately help a whole lot of people.

I encourage you to take out a notebook and write down: “What does ‘good success’ look like to me?” Leave (abandon) every thought of doubt and write down every “want and why.” Then leave the “how” up to God.

After that, focus on where God is taking you to. You’ve got to be focused.