Where Is My Focus?

I'm learning that growing up is more about becoming someone than doing something.

At church this morning, we sent a friend of mine off to the Philippines as a missionary. A few months ago, she encouraged me with the fact that she still had no idea what she wanted to do with her life, though she had picked a degree and was about to graduate college. Her focus was her becoming who God made her to be. Following Him to the Philippines was simply her being the person He's making her, a person about God's work in her life and others.

I thought perhaps this feeling of wondering and impatience at what my next step is would disappear when I chose a career path. I see now that I was probably mistaken. If following Christ is truly my top priority, then I'm going to have to trust and wait on Him for every step. No matter what season I am in, I will always be waiting, always making decisions, always having to trust.

I will also always be becoming, and that is where my focus should be. I should concentrate on having a soft heart toward God, reading His Word, and living like I believe it. I need to be honing my skills for His use, doing my best with what He has given me. I must be constantly taking back ground from Satan, and living in the victory Christ won for me. I must be loving others and declaring the truths of the gospel, including those I just mentioned. These are things I can do today, and, meanwhile, I can look for opportunities to live out of who God is creating me to be as I do these things.

God is not calling me to do it all right. He is not asking me to hurry up and choose a career path. He is asking me to trust and seek Him, allowing Him to make me who He wants me to be. I find this option a lot more freeing than stressing over my future. "Do not worry about tomorrow," He says, "for tomorrow will worry about itself." (Matthew 6:34) In time, God will reveal what I am supposed to do. For this moment, however, what matters is that I am a child of God, loved and planned for. He holds the rest.