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Day 258, or September 15. Have you lost your focus?

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Our thoughts today come from Micah chapter 3 verse 11.

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Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes

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for money. Yet they look for the Lord's support and say, Is not the Lord among us?

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No disaster will come upon us.

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Now the big picture surrounding this verse. After Micah has condemned the leadership and

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prophets of his day for seriously straying away from God's pathway, he then gives them

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a glimpse of the restoration to come. God isn't just the God of judgment, he is the

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God of restoration as well.

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And now our action step for today. Micah looks at his fellow countrymen and women and condemns

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them for losing their focus. The leaders are focusing on money instead of God. I hasten

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to add that making money is not wrong, but when that is all that your life has become,

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then it's time to check your focus and change. In the 21st century, no matter which chief

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executive is interviewed for their comments about company performance, the bottom line

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is always, this is how much profit we've made. I realize that there must be profits,

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but when that is all that matters we need to refocus. The apostle Paul was right when

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he said, For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, and some people, craving

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money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. You

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can find this in 1 Timothy chapter 6 verse 10. I've had some interesting conversations

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with fellow believers about giving and tithing, and we fall into two camps, those who say,

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I cannot afford to give a tenth, and those who say, Isn't God good to let me keep nine

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tenths? Micah's listeners had lost focus, and it cost them dearly. Ask yourself today,

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why are you doing what you're doing? What is your aim in life? After all, the only route

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to true happiness is to follow the words of Jesus. Seek first the kingdom of God above

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all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need. You can find

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this in Matthew chapter 6 verse 33.