In our culture, it’s common practice to overemphasize focusing on ourselves. We manifest an obsession with looking out for our own best interests in various ways. Some examples include being too critical of ourselves, pursuing extreme comfort/luxury, or seldom if ever making sacrifices for the benefit of others. If we throttled back these pursuits, many could become a part of a healthy routine. After all, some introspection to overcome failure, opting to reward ourselves for doing good work in the form of comfort/luxury, or prioritizing self-care over helping others to maintain our well-being is not unreasonable. The problem comes when actions like these become all-encompassing, or more specifically, hinder our focus on Jesus Christ. He alone deserves our worship and complete surrender. If applied to anything outside of God, it becomes an act of idolatry.
There are some interesting side effects of focusing outside of ourselves. Perhaps it never rings truer than when we apply this energy and attention to the matters that God wants us to direct our focus. I cannot remember when I felt any regret after pursuing God’s will. On the contrary, there is a strong association with giving our time, energy, and effort that correlates with personal satisfaction. As our Lord and Savior said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).” There is joy and peace associated with executing God’s purposes with a cheerful attitude. While the aspects of being a cheerful giver in a monetary sense are explicitly stated in God’s Word, serving God in many other forms with a similar disposition has proven to be a significant blessing in my life (2 Corinthians 9:6-7).
Another noteworthy aspect of looking outside oneself is avoiding idolatry of our situation. As mentioned above, there may be seasons where you need to look out for yourself with God’s help to sustain yourself. Situations that require radical attention to one’s care are part of life as it often gets quite challenging. However, looking at the big picture, it is crucial to avoid doing this exclusively at the expense of generosity. Instead, we ought to open our hearts to the needs of others because in fulfilling those needs, we will see that God often meets our needs in the process (Proverbs 11:25). When we find ourselves in a situation to offer a helping hand, counsel a friend, or volunteer to help someone in need, we are simultaneously relying on God to help us continue to look after ourselves. Rather than the emptiness found in seeking pleasure, comfort, and luxuries for ourselves at all times, we instead get to enjoy the fruits of our labor for others (Philippians 2:3-4).
How often have we seen those who appear to have everything the world offers face intense personal turmoil? It doesn’t take much time to observe a lack of fulfillment, direction, and satisfaction plague even those with the most money, fame, and power. There is deceitfulness about the riches in this life and the numerous, fleeting allures of the flesh (Mark 4:18-20). But, of course, having a lot of money is not always a curse when we approach it with a desire to steward it for the glory of God. If God equips you to do so, it can be a responsibility that He can bless you with the wisdom to allocate appropriately (Mark 25:14-30).
The key is that He would guide our motivations and that we would submit to His will with it. It becomes a problem when we seek it for personal enrichment alone without consideration for what God would lead us to do with it. After all, if our entire lives genuinely revolve around the will of God, then we should also surrender our finances to His lead. Granted, we’re not all called to sell all we have and donate it outright, as we observe in the parable of the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:21-22). However, that doesn’t take away from the responsibility involved with what we do with it. If we utilize a good portion of it for the things of God over the long haul, we will experience those fruits. Putting money to work for God will yield eternal reward, and there is no better investment than that. To do so successfully takes consistent prayer, generosity, and open-mindedness to the commands of God when we know He is guiding us in a particular direction.
One last aspect of outward focus that deserves attention is deciding how to allot our time. If our hearts are fully seeking God, the way we invest our time will reflect that reality. Remember, where we invest our treasure is a vital indicator of the status of our hearts (Matthew 6:19-21). It may not be a common realization or at least something we don’t always consider, but time is among our greatest treasures here on earth. Each passing minute is one we will not have the chance to assign to another pursuit again. As such, we should consider doing things for God with a sense of urgency. There is a limited amount of time on earth, but every minute has the potential to have an eternal impact (Ephesians 5:15-21). For instance, taking proactive steps to pursue evangelism opportunities, interceding in prayer, or actively utilizing our God-given talents could yield eternal blessings. The key is that we don’t allow this urgency to stress us out but abide in God as we serve Him with intentionality. Doing His work should not become a heavy burden, and we need to seek Him to refresh us when we feel weary (Galatians 6:9, Matthew 11:28-30).
At the end of our lives, we will not regret one minute invested in seeking God and building His Kingdom. I cannot say the same for the time we squandered pursuing the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). Thankfully, if you are reading this as a believer, you no longer have to concern yourself with the weight of past mistakes. Surrender your cares to God, and move on with the complete confidence that you do not need to dwell in condemnation anymore (Romans 8:1). Once God has forgiven you, forgive yourself, repent, and pursue God in such a way that demonstrates you have learned from your mistakes. Once you do that, there is nothing that will be able to hold you back from accomplishing God’s will, and your sacrifices on this earth will one-day yield everlasting blessings none of us can even fathom (Romans 8:18). May God bless you with the desires of your heart as you continually seek to align those longings with His will for you (Psalm 37:4).
