Focus is an interesting thing. I ask my students to focus on the core elements of their essays; I ask them to focus on detail and specificity. In curriculum revision, we’re asked to focus on desired learning outcomes. As a faculty member, I try to focus on my scholarship and my students’ learning. Today’s readings ask us to focus on things that are primary: our relationship with God, and God’s centrality in our existence. The readings from Hosea and Psalms are pretty clear: “I am God. Most importantly, I am your God. Listen to Me. I will make your life worth living. If you’ve screwed up, we can fix that—return to Me.” These Bible passages sound authoritarian (and why not? It’s God, after all…), but after some reflection, we can understand what’s going on in a fundamental context. We are loved. That’s the focus—we are loved consistently, constantly, completely. And while we see the results of this love every day, all we must do to reap the complete benefit of this love is simple—to love in return. |