HOW TO STAY ON TASK | ON MISSION | TRUE TO YOUR CALL

… THUS CREATING MORE MARGIN IN YOUR LIFE AND GROWING IN THE ANOINTING OF GOD.

Life, it seems, is getting more & more complicated | complex | confusing as time goes on. There are lots of problems in the world that desperately need to be solved. However, if we all desire to be effective for God and remain true to our individual calling, we must turn our back on all of them and focus exclusively on the problem God has called us uniquely to work on.

I believe, as I read through the Gospels, that Jesus Himself sets the example for us in terms of HOW TO STAY ON MISSION by setting these examples:

1] Luke 4:18-19 KJV

[18] The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, [19] To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

FOCUS : Jesus’ Mission Statement. Jesus was called by The Father to the Jews, not the Gentiles. He had a specific anointing | calling | purpose ….

Understanding His Mission from His Father, Jesus was able to not only stay on task and not get distracted but He taught us:

o how to stay true to our own anointing

o why it is important

o the liberty that it creates in our lives

The anointing on Jesus’ life set the agenda for His life and the agenda for His disciples, He instilled that focus and agenda into His team.

2] Matthew 10:5-8 KJV

[5] These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, “Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: [6] But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. [7] And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. [8] Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give”.

Jesus was clear on His calling and did not allow himself to get entangled with other issues of life or those shiny objects that seem to constantly want to draw our attention away from our mission.

3] Matthew 15:22-24 NLT

[22] A Gentile woman who lived there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.” [23] But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.” [24] Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep-the people of Israel.”

Issue of Life | Shiny object _ Jesus rejects ministering to the Gentile woman; He gave her no reply and reinforced His mission. Even though Jesus was not there to minister to her she none the less pulled on the anointing of Jesus and was healed. Jesus was not looking for a Gentile woman to heal but just those He is called to serve, the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

4] Mark 12:14-17 KJV

[14] And when they were come, they say unto him, “Master, we know that thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” [15] Shall we give, or shall we not give? But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, “Why tempt ye me? bring me a penny, that I may see it.” [16] And they brought it . And he saith unto them,” Whose is this image and superscription?” And they said unto him, Caesar’s. [17] And Jesus answering said unto them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they marveled at him.

Issue of Life | Shiny object: Jesus rejected getting actively involved in the issue of taxes and politics. He gave some advice and then moved on.

5] Luke 9:52-56 KJV ….

[52] And He sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for Him. [53] And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. [54] And when his disciples James and John saw this , they said, “Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?” [55] But He turned, and rebuked them, and said, “Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. [56] For the Son of Man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them”. And they went to another village.

Issue of Life | Shiny object: Discrimination issues: Jesus stayed true to His mission by going to Jerusalem and to minister to the lost sheep of Israel. He needed a place to sleep for the night and was discriminated against because He was a Jew in Samaria. Jesus disciples wanted to effect revenge by calling fire down on the Samaritans but Jesus would not have anything to do with that; He did not get caught up in solving discrimination | racial injustice between the Jews and Samaritans. Verse 55-56 Jesus reminds the disciples of the mission they are on and rebuked them for getting distracted. They just went to another village.

6] Romans 12:4-6 NLT …

[4] Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, [5] so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. [6] In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So, if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.

Issue of Life | Shiny object: The Body of Christ is huge in number and power; God’s grace and provision on us is unlimited. We as part of the Body of Christ have individual and separate gifts and talents that God wants us to use in a specific area in order to contribute to the overall mission of the Body of Christ on this earth which is to be [among other things]:

o Salt & Light

o Ambassadors of Christ

o Ministers of Reconciliation

o Ministers of the New Covenant

o To be disciples and to make disciples of all nations. I believe that we make disciples by being disciples and thereby allowing the transforming power of the Holy Spirit to invade the space and people around us.

He wants us to focus and do things He’s called us individually to do well and with excellence and allow The Holy Spirit to orchestrate His will on earth as it is in heaven through our collective callings. Don’t get pulled off your mission.

7] Galatians 6:10 KJV

[10] As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

As we focus on our mission and reject the shiny objects and as we have opportunity and financial means we can, and should sow into the works for others in the Body of Christ financially. But not get distracted and actively involved if the mission is outside of our individual mission.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED:

I believe the big lesson Jesus is demonstrating here is that we need to turn our back on all problems of the world except the one that we are uniquely called to work on.

I believe that by practicing the self-discipline [a segment of the Fruit of The Holy Spirit] of focusing on our mission we will:

o Create more margin in our lives

o Attract more of The Holy Spirit’s provision for what He has called us to

o Experience the liberty in our lives that Jesus referred to

o Realize that Jesus burden is light and His yoke is easy

So, turn your back on all the problems of the world except those that you are called to work on. Don’t get pulled off task by the issues of life | shiny objects that you cannot impact because you are not called | positioned | gifted to effect.

Jesus taught us to focus our attention on the mission that The Father has for us individually and to live within those boundaries; God after all is a God of order | design | purpose, and He expects everything to be done decently and in order with a righteous motive.

The One that keeps us on track is The Holy Spirit and it is important to understand that The Holy Spirit works through others to accomplish that work. We see this in the life of Jesus; He kept His team focused and on track with His mission from The Father.

Who in your life is The Holy Spirit working through to keep you on track and singularly focused on your mission. Do you even know what your mission is? Are you confused and anxious about all the roles you play and cannot discern a life mission?

Perhaps I can help.

Working primarily with Christ Followers in the marketplace to grow businesses and grow in relationship with our Lord, I am a Trusted Business Advisor | Coach | CEO Peer2Peer Group Chair | Disciple of Jesus making disciples.

As a called, anointed, seasoned leader and advisor it is my mission to business coach and disciple marketplace leaders; I sow into your life, counsel.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Len DiGiovanni | Trusted Business Advisor + Chair CEO Peer Group

Business Performance ? Eternal Perspective

925-998-3859

[email protected]