Size Matters….NOT!

If you got to watch the San Diego Chargers play the Indianapolis Colts last weekend, you were in for a treat. Darren Sproles, all of 5 feet 6 inches tall, racked up 328 all-purpose yards…which is good enough for 3rd all-time in playoff history. When he entered the NFL draft out of Kansas State, he had plenty of critics...he’s too small…he’s only a kick returner or 3rd down back…you can’t depend on him every play. I wonder how many folks still doubt Darren Sproles after that great performance.

Mr. Sproles isn’t the only person that has ever had people doubt him because of his appearance. David was the youngest of eight boys in his family. When Samuel came to anoint the next king of Israel, he thought any of David’s older brothers were surely the one God had chosen. Instead, God told Samuel “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). When David was called in from tending the sheep, God told Samuel to “Rise and anoint him; he is the one” (1 Samuel 16:12).

Jesus showed us how we are to be more concerned with people’s hearts than with their looks or prestige. He often disagreed with Pharisees and Sadducees that were considered the most religious people of the day. Instead, Jesus spent much of his time teaching “common people”…reaching out to leapers, prostitutes, and people that He wasn’t “supposed” to talk to. God isn’t about the way things look…we shouldn’t be either.

Playoffs and Focus

We are on the eve of the baseball playoffs and 8 teams have the opportunity to end the year as World Series champions. For the next month, individuals on these teams will have a single focus...everything else is comes second to winning that title. Have you ever felt that way...whether it was about a friend, girl/boyfriend, family member, or work? If so, you know how your thoughts can be a runaway train and everything else is an afterthought.

We all know that a single focus on another human or a secular event can have adverse consequences. Maybe you've seen the person who plastered himself into a wall just to look at a beautiful lady/gentleman for one more second...or seen the person who got in a car wreck because they were texting on their cell phone while driving.

Now flip the switch...what if our sole focus was on God? We are told that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, wisdom, and discipline (Proverbs 1:7). We are also told to meditate on the God's word day and night, that we may be careful to do everything in it (Joshua 1:8). Psalm 84:10 reminds us that one day in God's courts are better than 1,000 days anywhere else. The beautiful thing about this is that serving others is part of our single focus on God. Jesus told us that the most important commandment in the Law is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind...Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the prophets hang on these two commandments (Matthew 22:37-40).

I don't know about you...but if Jesus tells us 2 principles to follow will help us be right in every other area of our lives, it's good enough and you can lock it up and take it to the bank (not only is Jesus better than Tiger and Shaft...He's also better than banks). We love to focus so much on things that will only let us down with time....let's flip the switch and focus on the one who is the great I Am...because at the end of the day if God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31)?