THE GOAL
So we make it our goal to please Him. 2 Corinthians 5:9
Goals. Either you set them, or you don’t. Neither is better than the other, more a preference. Some prefer to live by lists, agendas, check boxes (I tend to be this way – it really helps me to focus and not get lost in my day) and planners. Others have a general sense of what needs to be done and just roll with it.
I tended to be less list-oriented when my children were younger. We had a general flow of our days, but flexibility was the name of the game. Even in our 20+ years of homeschooling. Life happens, so I had to learn to adapt. But as I’ve grown out of a job (I am no longer a homeschool teacher as we graduated all our students), my life needs a schedule.
Maybe that is why Paul’s words speak to me. Goals. Aims. Pleasing God.
What am I aiming at? What direction do I want to go each and every day? How can I please my Father in the daily grind? Is it a daily grind? If I am in fact trying to please Him, why would I call it a grind? Something to think about.
Goals are there to keep us on track, and can be adapted as necessary – or at least should be if we were off track somewhere. Goals give us something to train for. Take Camino de Santiago. These 9 trails that are spread throughout France, Spain and Portugal have come into my radar and one in particular has caught my eye. I want to be a pilgrim on the trail that follows the Portuguese coast up to northwest Spain. It’s about 190 miles for this trek and since I have been recovering from a feet injury for over 2 years, this is a goal of mine. It’s the carrot at the end of my stick.
It’s what keeps me going. Don’t get me wrong, the Lord keeps me going and He is my ultimate goal, but having a tangible and attainable goal in front of me is the cherry on top. In my future physical therapy (as of yet I have not done any PT), thinking about the sandy beaches in Portugal and the beautiful countryside will motivate me to push through the pain.
To bring it closer to home – how can I please God in this? How can those of us who suffer, have an affliction, care for someone with an affliction, have a dead end job, a struggling marriage – we all have something – how can we please God in our stuff?
My Camino de Santiago goal is just that – my goal. Something I set. Pleasing God would be doing what He wants me to do. Living every day in affliction with an attitude to please Him. Submitting to Him, loving Him, serving Him, having a daily walk with Him, learning from Him. Choosing to have an attitude of grace and acceptance pleases God.
Jesus demonstrated this in the Garden. “”Not My will but Yours,” He said (Mark 14:36). He chose obedience and modeled to us what this looks like. Philippians 2:6-11 gives us a beautiful picture of Christ’s obedience and God’s pleasure.
Are you in a place where God is calling you higher, changing a goal, or leading you in a different direction than before? Are you willing to explore, through prayer, study in the Word and stillness, what new goal/goals God is setting for you? Yes, it can be challenging leaving the unfamiliar, or even leaving a box unchecked, but our main purpose in life is to please God and enjoy Him forever; let’s go ahead and leave our lists or make new ones.
Father God, You are worthy of my love and You are my goal. You are whom I want to please every day and in every decision. I have my eyes focused on You, the prize. If I am not in alignment with what You want for me, I submit to the change. I accept Your hand leading me and I do want Your will done in my life. I chose to please You. AMEN
