From Busyness to Focus

Could anyone else use a rest?!? ...and if I wasn't the preacher and someone told me to find rest by focusing on God, I'd think they had lost their mind. How do we find rest by focusing on God? The more I focus on God the more it seems I'm required to do. Adding God to my schedule doesn't add rest, it adds issues.

So, how do we find rest when we're asked to wear so many hats, compounded by the pressure we feel to put them all on? How can I focus on all that is expected of me and still find rest? Scripture tells us the answer is found in our decision to establish our non-negotiables.

Matthew 6:24

No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be slaves of God and of money.

Our lives are so busy... the hats we wear... the places we go, all we're involved in, everything we want to accomplish... that in the end, we're overwhelmed. We see God as just another voice in a chorus of voices telling us how we should fill our time. Leading us to see the disciplines of faith as just another list of requirements added to a sea of activities.

Michael Zigarelli stating that, "The accelerated pace and activity level of the modern day distracts us from God and separates us from the abundant joyful, victorious life He desires for us." He describes the problem as "a vicious cycle" driven by cultural conformity. Zigarelli says busyness may be a global pandemic. He suggests that Christians break the cycle by "reordering our thinking," including "the way we think about who God is and how He wants us to live our lives."

No one can be a slave of two masters

Scripture brings us back to the lie satan is trying to sell us, about our ability to have it all. So, we're face to face with the question, is God lying to us and we can serve two masters, we can live two lives; or is satan lying to us and No one can be a slave of two masters? How is all of this rest???

Rest is only viable when we focus on one goal. (master, Lord, purpose)

Jim Wilson states that, "the Christ-follower must move from a double minded lifestyle to a singular focus," and he defines focus as "a single-minded devotion to and enduring pursuit of God."

James 4:8

Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, double-minded people!

Do we have a singular focus, scripture is not talking about limiting life to one activity but to one goal or purpose through whatever activities we pursue?!? BUT WHY???

since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other.

Do we resent God for getting in the way of our activities or

do we resent our activities for getting in the way of God?

How does mixed loyalties really affect our relationship with Christ?