Focus on the Cloak

I once worked for a major coffee chain that shall remain nameless -- but features a mermaid and is named after a major character in Moby Dick. It's a great company, but while I worked there, I grew to hate the advent of...well, Advent. It makes my blood pressure rise just thinking about it. The busyness and the business drove me mad -- not to mention the flood of morons who'd waited until the last second to buy some coffee-related junk for a loved one, and were mad at me that we'd run out. So for each of the four Christmases I worked there, I dreaded rather than embraced this season. I'd lost focus.

It's not just a problem that's unique to the Christmas season -- it just seems to come to a head then. But the truth is we're getting busier, and we have to do whatever it takes to keep our eyes on Jesus.

Start by avoiding people. I'm not just saying that because I'm an unapologetic introvert. You need to make and take time away for yourself. Take your Bible, maybe some other books, a giant stick to fight off bears, and head out to the wilderness, wherever your local wilderness might be. In addition to his own wilderness experience, Jesus took time out to be alone with God.

So now that you've spent time alone with God, spend time with others. I know a lot of small groups and accountability groups stop meeting because of the busyness of the holidays. Shouldn't this be a time when meeting becomes more important? If you're drained, you can bet others are too. Yes, everyone's busy. Yes, it's hard to find time to meet. But if a shopping trip is interfering with your fellowship, you've lost focus.

I spend my days writing and editing Jesus-related stuff. I'm in the Bible all day, every day...but that's not the same as spending time with Jesus or time in the Word. I know it's you're job, but don't let your teenagers take your eyes off Jesus, either. If you're so busy connecting with kids that you're not connecting with God, you've lost focus.

A powerful story in Mark tells of a time when a large crowd was following Jesus, “pressing in on him.” A woman who'd suffered from bleeding for 12 years fought her way through that crowd. I can picture her fixing her eyes on his cloak. That was her goal, and she wouldn't let anything or anyone keep her from touching him. And when she did, Jesus knew it. He knew that power had gone out from him, but he also would have known how hard this woman had fought to get through the crowd with the belief that he alone could heal her.

Don't lose your focus, at this or any other time of the year. There are crowds to fight off, but touching that cloak still heals…but only if you don't let anything stop you from touching it.

Scott Firestone IV is the associate editor for Group Magazine. You can contact him at sfirestone@group.com.