Soldiers have a job to do. And a good soldier cannot get distracted worrying about issues unrelated to his specific mission. His focus is to remain entirely on fulfilling the orders of his commander. And this is the mindset we’re to have as well in our life with God.
God has given us each a mission, a calling that’s ours alone to fulfill. While we’re not in this battle alone, and we must rely on the support of others, we also cannot defer our duties to others or otherwise neglect our responsibilities. We must stay focused on the mission given to us.
Of course, this assumes we’re clear on the mission itself. And for many of us this will be our first step – to have a clear understanding of our orders. How has God uniquely equipped and called us to advance his kingdom of light?
But this clarity is only beneficial as long as we’re able to stay on mission. Certainly, our various sins, shortcomings, and vices are all prone to take us out, not to mention the other dragons and nits we must also contend with. We must also resist getting distracted by good things. As much as we want to be there for others, we cannot lose ground on our battlefront trying to help everyone else.
And what becomes particularly hard is fulfilling our orders while also being a family man. But it’s a mistake to assume these contradict each other. Our family life is part of our mission. Yet there is tension here and somehow we must figure out how to do both.
We grieve the Spirit when we allow the things of this world to entangle us and hold us back from the work God has given us to do.
In the end, be pleasing to God as a hard fighting soldier and completing the orders he has given you.
Photo by Lance Reis on Unsplash
