Keeping Your Focus

A while ago I received the newsletter from a wonderful ministry, Faith Mountain Ministries which is the ministry of Rev. Henry Vanderbush (www.vanderbushministries.com). Henry's son Bill wrote incredible article called Keep Your Focus. The article has to do with 2 Kings 2:1-12, the story of Elijah and Elisha.

9 “When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you." And Elisha said, "Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me." 10 And he said, "You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so." 11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, "My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" And he saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.”

Bill Vanderbush then says the following:

“Now consider this test. All Elisha has to do is watch Elijah while he’s being taken up. But then God sends this spectacular show of power and glory. Here’s the point. In order to qualify for the greater anointing that your heart longs for, you have to be able to function with focus on what God has called you to, and not be distracted, even by the supernatural things going on around you that are from Him. Keep your eyes focused, and your heart pure, set on one voyage, fixed on His voice, set your gaze toward nothing else but Him.”

Elijah was taken up in the whirlwind.  As I read it, the reason for the chariots and horses of fire was to separate the two men from each other.

I believe this is an important message for believers today. I want you to consider it for a moment. The chariots and horses were from God, not the Devil. There can be times when the manifestations of God’s power can pull out focus away from the goal.  Elisha had to make sure Elijah did not leave his sight when he was taken up in the whirlwind, this was the only requirement to obtain his request for a double portion of Elijah’s anointing.

It is one thing to consider that difficult circumstances can draw our attention away from our focus on the Lord but when good things, even things of God, can draw our attention away from keeping our eyes on Jesus that is something different.  Mountain top experiences are wonderful and necessary, but if we let the experiences become necessary to have ‘fellowship with the Lord’ then they are distracting us from the right focus.  Let us make sure our Ladder Times serve their purpose, to provide confirmation of God’s presence, to give us the opportunities to meet with and if necessary make necessary changes to our lives.  Don’t let them become the focus we strive towards.

Why LadderTimes?

Now that I am some 3 and a half years since I started this blog I though I might post another entry here!  Ok, so consistency has not been a big thing with me the last while.  To update since the last post all so long ago, I have been cancer free since the surgery in January of 2009.  It was a 12 month recovery that was one of the toughest things I have been through.  Not only the physical but the emotional and others “-al”s as well.  I was off of work for 10 weeks.  3 months after I came back to work my position was terminated and I was let go with no severance pay or anything.  I spent 15 months looking for work and finally found another position with another company.  But the Lord has been good!  The reason I entitled this posting “Why LaderTimes” is to try to explain and explore what this blog was originally about and what it may become.

I chose LadderTimes (please note, not Latter Times) in response to a sermon I had preached at a Baccalaureate service in Iowa several years ago.  In Genesis 28 we have the story of Jacob leaving his home to go to Paddan-aram to find a wife among this mother’s people,”of Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.” (Gen 28:5).  While on the journey, in verses 11-22 is a recounting of Jacob’s dream:

Gen 28:11-15 ESV  And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep.  (12)  And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!  (13)  And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, "I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring.  (14)  Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.  (15)  Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

There are times in our walk with the Lord that we will have similar experiences; whether it is journeying  to a place we have not been to before, or walking through circumstances we have not gone through before, or troubling times, etc.  In these time we can have an epiphany or manifestation, especially of the Lord or His nature or character, etc. and it can leave us like Jacob saying "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it."

In my walk with the Lord, one of those times was the cancer diagnosis, the treatment and recovery.  My original intent was to write about the recovery experience and how the Lord had revealed Himself.  Unfortunately one thing I lost over time was the password to my login!

So, here I am again, hoping (but not promising) to continue the journey of sharing and posting what the Lord has been revealing to me through His Spirit, the Word, His people and the incredible life He has given us.

I hope this will be a blessing, I am sure it will be to me as I continue to encounter Christ in daily life.

So, shall we start again?  (and this time I cannot blame the drugs for the ramblings!)

Blessings!