Graham Cooke's "Keys to Brilliant Focus"

     One of the devotionals I have been using in my daily quiet time is Graham Cooke's Keys to Brilliant Focus which has 52 short meditations to reflect upon.  Today I read number 42 which was longer than normal--about 3 pages--but so rich in inspiration and truth!  I am posting some of the thoughts that struck me this morning.  If I could remember to see my life in this light I would be excited for problems because I would realize they are all opportunities to grow in likeness to God.

"The key to every circumstance is presence.  The key to presence is focus on the aspect of God's nature that He wants to develop in us through the situation in hand."

"We lead with His nature.  The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control…  The fruit of the Spirit is the very definition of presence…the first line of defense in warfare…"

"We live in the fruit of the Spriit that is assigned to the problem; not the problem itself…"

"When we focus on God's nature as our first response to everything, we receive the key that opens up the circumstance to God's blessing and favor.  We are in Him learning how to persist in His nature, rather than to persevere in the situation.  Continuing in primary pupose puts us above the circumstance. We overcome when our goal to become like God is grather than our need for resolution of the problem…"

"All the most wonderful things of God come to us via testing…The best way to live is to be focused on the nature of God as the goal of everything.  Do not stray from primary purpose, which is to become conformed to the image of Jesus.  Cultivating His nature is one of the primary keys of the Kingdom…"
The real test is not the resolution of the situation (that's the by-product); it is the development [in us] of God's nature in the fruit of the Spirit…"