Escaping From the Clutter of Self-Focus

Daily writing prompt

Where can you reduce clutter in your life?

Perhaps the greatest source of clutter in life is self-focus. It clutters our mind and our heart with our own thoughts, feelings, and desires until we have little room for anything else. How can we escape from the clutter of self-focus? Discipleship is the key. Here are a few of the liberating dynamics of discipleship:

Commit to the Lord whatever you do and always allow Him to establish your plans. (Proverbs 16:3) Follow Jesus, not your own desires. (Matthew 4:19)
Ask God to give you a Bible verse. (Psalm 119:11) When a Scripture comes to your mind write it down. Read it, ponder it, and quote it. (Joshua 1:8) Do what it says to do, throughout the day. (Matthew 7:24) Let it work deep inside of you. (1 Thessalonians 2:13) Allow the Holy Spirit to teach you how to He wants you to apply it in your daily life. (1 Thessalonians 5:19) Be a doer of the word and not just a hearer. (James 1:22-25)
Protect your heart from unforgiveness (Ephesians 4:32) and bitterness. (Hebrews 12:15) Don’t ever go to bed angry. (Ephesians 4:26)
Control your thoughts. (Philippians 4:8) Strive to make every thought you have obey Jesus. (2 Corinthians 10:5) Always seek first the kingdom of God — God’s invisible (Luke 17:20-21) inner governance of your life — and His right living. (Matthew 6:33)
Look unto Jesus. (Hebrews 12:2) Train yourself to stay focused on the risen Jesus throughout each day. Listen to Him speak to you (John 10:27) and do what He says. (John 2:5) Learn to keep the presence of “Christ in you,” (Colossians 1:27) in your conscious awareness and to let His words burn in your heart. (Luke 24:13-35)
Make demonstrating God’s love your goal. (1 Corinthians 14:1) Love one another, (John 13:34) even your enemies. (Matthew 5:43-48)
Deny yourself by keeping your focus off of what you want. Take up your cross daily by choosing to die to your own desires. and follow Jesus by hanging out with Him and obeying Him day and night. (Luke 9:23)
Find many more of the dynamics of daily discipleship by reading the Bible every single day. Let it burn in your heart (Luke 24:32) by reading it like a love letter directly from God to you. Avoid analyzing it and picking it apart as if it was a scholarly textbook. It’s not. (Hebrews 4:12)

About Steve Simms

I like to look and think outside the box. In college I encountered Jesus Christ and I have been passionate about trying to get to know Him better ever since. My wife and I long to see the power and passion of the first Christ-followers come to life in our time. I have written a book about our experiences in non-traditional church, called, "Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible--Ekklesia." If you need encouragement, search for: Elephants Encouraging The Room and/or check out my Amazon author page. Thank you!

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