We all sin and we’ll continue sinning until we reach heaven, but we can eliminate much of it right now, especially those nasty sins that continue to come back to haunt us constantly.
The literal meaning of the word “sin” is to miss the mark (we mentioned that in last week’s Scripture Memory Song post for Romans 3:23). So our lives are aimed at some metaphorical or spiritual target and every time we sin, we miss that target. So what’s the target? Many people don’t even know, especially those who have no knowledge of our Savior and Lord, so it’s no wonder we miss the target: we don’t even know what to aim at!
The Target
To put it simply, our target, the goal we should all aim to meet with every action we take, is to fulfill God’s will and purpose. He has created this universe and he created it with a plan and purpose. Every time we deviate from the good purpose of God to fulfill some other, lesser purpose, we are sinning. Some people may read that and think that it’s extremely vain of God to tell us we’re being bad just because we’re not doing something he’d rather have us do. This thinking misses out on two facts: we’re designed by God to live and function a certain way so he knows best how we need to be, plus he has a much larger view and understanding of the world (while also having a more minute and detailed view and understanding) and knows what will bring the best good to the world that he dearly loves. His will has nothing to do with vanity or selfishness (unlike our own) and has everything to do with love. You can see that in a previous post I wrote called “How Terrible Is Our Sin“.
Turn Around and Take Aim
So how do we start hitting that target? Repent. That word was used a lot in the Bible, so take note of it. Repent doesn’t just mean that we should feel guilt for our sin, though that’s the start. Repent means “to change your mind” and “to turn away”. We need to change our mind about sin, to start believing that it is actually terrible and that God’s way is good. We need to turn away from our sins and toward God’s will. We need to stop aiming at the target(s) that the Devil has placed before us and start aiming at God’s target.
The real key has to do with the last part of each of the last 3 sentences: looking toward God. If you’re focus is on not sinning, then you’re going to sin because the only thing you’re thinking about and focusing on is the sin. You need to aim elsewhere, to focus on something else, and the only target that counts is the one that God set up. If our focus is completely on God’s target then we’re far less likely to miss it. If we’re focused on not hitting a target the devil has set it, then we’re still not likely to hit God’s target. When Peter was walking on water with Jesus, he didn’t start sinking until he took his eyes off Jesus.
We have to replace sin with good things. When Paul talks in his letters, he doesn’t just say to stop doing the bad things…
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry… But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.
Colossians 3:5, 8
…he also tells us tells us the good things we should do:
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
Colossians 3:12-13
Also note that he tends to spend more time talking about the good things we ought to do, as if he’s trying to prove my point. 😉
Practical Ways to Focus on God
So how do we focus on God throughout our day? We can’t just go around repeating the word “God” in our head over and over, and that might not do too much good anyway. Here’s a list of a few things that you can do to help focus on God.
- Read God’s Word in the morning. If God’s Word is one of the first things we put in front of our face every morning, then the words we read will be available for us to ponder the rest of the day and affect how we think. If you can also find ways to work God’s Word in throughout the day, even better.
- Pray Ceaselessly. Set up little alarms/notifications to remind you to pray throughout the day. Prayer can help us shift our focus to God and away from ourselves.
- Memorize Scripture. If you lock scripture in your heart, it’ll always be there when you need it. If something comes up, you can reflect on the portions of God’s Word that you know and let them guide you. If you put the verses into song, like we have on our site, then it’s even easier to memorize them and recall them throughout the day.
- Listen to Worship Music. Music can have a tendency to get stuck in our head, which is a good thing when it’s a good, uplifting song. This is part of the reason we like to make our memory verses into song. A lot of people even have jobs where it’s OK to have music playing all the time, and Christian music playing constantly can help keep the focus on God.
If you can make a habit of all of these things, you’re well on your way to making a habit of sinning less. May God bless you as you strive to hit the mark he has set before you.
