In the past week alone I have joined a sorority, and started working at the local Starbucks. I have always been a busy body but now every single hour of my day has a scheduled event filling it. I wake up no later than 6:30 am then I attend my first class. Followed by the gym for 1-2 hours, followed by one to three more classes depending on the day. Then, I work a 5-8-hour shift depending on if I have church, Greek life activities, or other events on campus, or even writing articles like this. Then I go back to my room hopefully by 10 pm (but that usually turns into 12 because of homework) to get a good night’s rest to start it again. And weekends are a full day of work. I get that my schedule is easier than many others, nonetheless its still causing stress. Especially as an 18 year old college freshman.
Where I was at
Last Wednesday I went to a church in Hayesville, North Carolina. I’ve been there several times before, but I ended up forgetting and making excuses, eventually leading up to missed attendance for over a month. And because of that alone, I have never been in a worse spiritual and emotional state in my life.
What happened
Wednesday’s are devoted to a book study. And that Wednesday was exactly what I needed to hear. the subject was “single mindedness” meaning that as humans many tend to self-inflict stress and other harmful qualities because we focus on the wrong things. The book then referenced when Peter walked on water. When Peter focused on his fear of drowning, sure enough he began to drown. When he turned his eyes back to God he accomplished the impossible. King Jehoshaphat was also fearful that his army would not prevail through a frightening battle but he said to God “our eyes are on you”, sure enough king Jehoshaphat’s army did not have to go to battle, and ended up winning the fight.
Both of these accounts have one competing similarity: their eyes were on things above. That was it. Easy as can be, they make sure their focus is on the right thing,
What I heard
So then we had a group discussion. One lady said that “focusing on God doesn’t get any easier when you're old.” A man agreed. Another lady said “That is right.” So then everyone asked “how could it get easier then?” A third lady replied “before your feet hit the ground, when you get out of bed make a choice. Choose to focus on God and read your bible or pray before you let your feet touch the Earth. Once they hit the ground we all start running.” I can guarantee that there’s a day that everyone forgets that. They forget to set their sight on things above. They try to do it themselves. They try to build treasures on earth. I know everyone does it because I know I do it.
What’s next?
There are many applications that can be taken away from this. But the most compelling one to me, was “before my feet hit the ground.” I can testify that the second my feet touch the floor in the morning, I am constantly running to class, on the treadmill, to Starbucks, to church, and to meetings until I find my way back to my bed. I still know my schedule isn’t as hard as others, but some nights, like tonight I wonder if it's as impossible as walking on water. But then I’m reminded that my focus is on the wrong thing. Instead of focusing on the schedule, I need to focus on God. Starting every single morning even before my feet hit the ground.
