Today’s ONE THING – Think “River”

• Today’s ONE THING is: “Think river”

Today’s thought is about one of my favorite topics – focus.  A few years ago a helpful word picture came to mind that helped me understand and communicate the concept of sustained focus.  It goes something like this:

Stage one: The swamp stage.

• The “swamp” stage is when a person gets bogged down in a million different things.  There if a lot of activity but no forward motion.

Stage two: The pond stage.

• The “pond” stage is when a person gets a little definition to their life but for all practical purposes their life has no real direction and is going nowhere.
• An example of the pond stage is marriage or a job.  A person moves from “being available” to settling on one person or settling on one job.  However, many people stop there.  They are married but their marriage has no real purpose and is thus going nowhere.  They now have a job but because they have no driving purpose in their life they just settle down for the long haul hoping they can keep their job until they retire or a better opportunity comes to them.  (Remember, ponds go nowhere.  Opportunity has to come to them.)

Stage three: The river stage.

• The river stage is when a person begins to narrow the focus of their life like the banks of a river and their life begins to move.  They have purpose, they have direction, they have passion.
• The catalyst for this is a sense of calling – “I don’t just go to work; I have a work to do.”
• Another catalyst for this is growth.  The difference between a tiny stream and a mighty river is the amount of water rushing through its banks.  Focus is good, but it requires a daily commitment to “feed your passion” by intentionally growing and learning.