Today's Focus: Neighbors in Need   We tend to think of distraction and focus as opposites. If someone is focused, they are not easily distracted by random events and encounters. Apart from Christ, that type of focus spells disaster for our neighbor. We may dismiss the needs of our neighbors, thinking, "If I spend time helping him, that will distract me from other things that need my attention." Jesus teaches us that he has set us free to live a life of such distraction. We are free to give our neighbors our undivided attention, even if that seems senseless.

Today's Focus: The Need for Workers   Everyone who has seen the grace of God will, whenever the opportunity arises, serve as a witness for Christ. However, Scripture teaches that there is also a need for individuals for whom gospel proclamation is their full-time focus. These workers are called by God himself through the Church to proclaim law and gospel in some public capacity. Jesus taught there will always be a need for such workers. "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few" (Luke 10:2).

Today's Focus: Christ's Call for Commitment  There is the type of fan who follows his team if they make the playoffs. Then there is the type of fan who, regardless of his team's record, watches every game and knows the stats for every player. There are different types of followers: the half-hearted versus the committed. Jesus wants followers who are all in. We simply do not have it inside us to produce that level of commitment. But in the gospel, we see how Jesus went all in for our salvation. As we witness the way Jesus made our eternal happiness the focus of his undivided attention, the Spirit creates within us the very commitment that Christ seeks.

Today's Focus: The Mission Right Before Us   We tend to think of mission work as being "over there," something done in a far-away place. But mission work isn't just "over there"; it's also right before us. If we have seen the grace of God, we will serve as witnesses for Christ. And we don't need to cross the ocean to share the gospel. We can simply cross the street. God will provide one opportunity after another to serve as the witnesses Jesus has made us to be. Let us continue to pray for and support "over there" mission work. But let us also give our undivided attention to the mission that God had placed right before each of us.