Watiri and I started an interesting daily habit a while back. At the end of each day, she asks me, “What is the one thing you’re grateful for today?”
It normally catches me off guard – so recently I decided to start thinking ahead. What if that’s the one question I take into the day?
Then I should be able to go to answer that question easily, right?
We should be able to get to bed every night and reflect back on the day, knowing that we took at least one action to move us a little closer to God and his intention for our lives.
And that “one thing” is different for each of us.
When I was younger I used to be excited at the number of things I accomplished in a day. As I get older, I’m realising that having too many things on the go means I don’t do any of them that well.
With this in mind, I want to share some reflections on the power of one thing.
You can see it through the Bible. Let’s start with David, for example.
David was described as a man after God's own heart. He says:
One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
Psalm 27:4
David is saying that if he could have one thing, it is to be with God. He wants his presence, he wants to see his goodness and be captured by his beauty. He wants God more than anything else.
What one thing do you desire of God?
What is one thing you seek after?
In John chapter 9, Jesus heals a man who had been blind since birth. The Pharisees want to catch Jesus committing a sin, so they question the healed man, trying to trick him into saying what Jesus had done was wrong. The healed man responds:
Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.
John 9:25
This man healed from blindness had encountered Jesus in such a way that he didn’t care what people thought about Jesus. He had encountered the transforming power of God, and that was enough.
One thing I have recently been reflecting on is that Jesus has paid the price for me to be free, and his grace is enough. As Tim Keller puts it:
The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.1
When it comes to your relationship with Jesus, what is the one thing you know for certain?
In Luke 10, we find Jesus at the home of two sisters. Mary is at his feet, wanting to hear what he has to say. Martha is very busy doing the household chores.
Flustered, Martha says, “Jesus, how come you’re not telling my sister to come and help?”
And Jesus says to her:
Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; but only one thing is necessary; for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
Luke 10:41-42
In the same way that Martha was distracted with all she was doing, we can become distracted with all the things we’re doing instead of sitting at the feet of Christ.
“Doing” instead of “being” is not a bad thing in itself, but we need to discern the times to “do” and “be”.
We are “distracting ourselves into spiritual oblivion,” as Ronald Rolheiser puts it, “more busy than bad, more distracted than non spiritual.”2
And when you decide to pursue and guard your one thing, you might disappoint people – you might be misunderstood.
N.T. Wright captures how Mary’s decision could have been perceived by others. He writes:
For a woman to settle down comfortably among the men was bordering on the scandalous. But here Mary sits, absorbing every word of Jesus and in the process, being molded and shaped as one of his disciples.3
It takes courage, perhaps even risk, to choose your one thing and guard it.
What one thing do you choose?
What will it take to guard your one thing?
Paul is suffering in prison while he writes this to the church in Philippi:
One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14
What holds you back from where God wants you to be? What do you need to let go of?
For some of you, it may be that you are not moving forward to where God wants you to be because you are holding on to something from the past. It might be hurt, shame or unforgiveness. Is it time to let go?
Grace is available to heal you. God wants to help you let go of the pain of the past and press on to what he has in store for you. Look to Jesus, who has taken your curse, pain, regret and punishment, and given you joy, freedom, peace, hope and abundant life!
What is one thing you can do to press on, leaving whatever hinders behind, so that you can become all that God wants you to become?
There is power in seeking, knowing, choosing and doing one thing.
David seeks one thing: to dwell in the house of the Lord.
The healed man knows one thing: that Jesus has transformed his life.
Mary chooses one thing: to sit at the feet of Christ.
Paul does one thing: reaches forward.
What is the one thing that could activate and reignite excitement and joy about life with Jesus?
1Timothy Keller, The Meaning of Marriage, 2011.
2Ronald Rolheiser, The Holy Longing, 1999.
3N.T. Wright, Luke For Everyone, 2001.
Check out other articles in the
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We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
Watiri and I started an interesting daily habit a while back. At the end of each day, she asks me, “What is the one thing you’re grateful for today?”
It normally catches me off guard – so recently I decided to start thinking ahead. What if that’s the one question I take into the day?
Then I should be able to go to answer that question easily, right?
We should be able to get to bed every night and reflect back on the day, knowing that we took at least one action to move us a little closer to God and his intention for our lives.
And that “one thing” is different for each of us.
When I was younger I used to be excited at the number of things I accomplished in a day. As I get older, I’m realising that having too many things on the go means I don’t do any of them that well.
With this in mind, I want to share some reflections on the power of one thing.
You can see it through the Bible. Let’s start with David, for example.
David was described as a man after God's own heart. He says:
One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
Psalm 27:4
David is saying that if he could have one thing, it is to be with God. He wants his presence, he wants to see his goodness and be captured by his beauty. He wants God more than anything else.
What one thing do you desire of God?
What is one thing you seek after?
In John chapter 9, Jesus heals a man who had been blind since birth. The Pharisees want to catch Jesus committing a sin, so they question the healed man, trying to trick him into saying what Jesus had done was wrong. The healed man responds:
Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.
John 9:25
This man healed from blindness had encountered Jesus in such a way that he didn’t care what people thought about Jesus. He had encountered the transforming power of God, and that was enough.
One thing I have recently been reflecting on is that Jesus has paid the price for me to be free, and his grace is enough. As Tim Keller puts it:
The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.1
When it comes to your relationship with Jesus, what is the one thing you know for certain?
In Luke 10, we find Jesus at the home of two sisters. Mary is at his feet, wanting to hear what he has to say. Martha is very busy doing the household chores.
Flustered, Martha says, “Jesus, how come you’re not telling my sister to come and help?”
And Jesus says to her:
Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; but only one thing is necessary; for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
Luke 10:41-42
In the same way that Martha was distracted with all she was doing, we can become distracted with all the things we’re doing instead of sitting at the feet of Christ.
“Doing” instead of “being” is not a bad thing in itself, but we need to discern the times to “do” and “be”.
We are “distracting ourselves into spiritual oblivion,” as Ronald Rolheiser puts it, “more busy than bad, more distracted than non spiritual.”2
And when you decide to pursue and guard your one thing, you might disappoint people – you might be misunderstood.
N.T. Wright captures how Mary’s decision could have been perceived by others. He writes:
For a woman to settle down comfortably among the men was bordering on the scandalous. But here Mary sits, absorbing every word of Jesus and in the process, being molded and shaped as one of his disciples.3
It takes courage, perhaps even risk, to choose your one thing and guard it.
What one thing do you choose?
What will it take to guard your one thing?
Paul is suffering in prison while he writes this to the church in Philippi:
One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14
What holds you back from where God wants you to be? What do you need to let go of?
For some of you, it may be that you are not moving forward to where God wants you to be because you are holding on to something from the past. It might be hurt, shame or unforgiveness. Is it time to let go?
Grace is available to heal you. God wants to help you let go of the pain of the past and press on to what he has in store for you. Look to Jesus, who has taken your curse, pain, regret and punishment, and given you joy, freedom, peace, hope and abundant life!
What is one thing you can do to press on, leaving whatever hinders behind, so that you can become all that God wants you to become?
There is power in seeking, knowing, choosing and doing one thing.
David seeks one thing: to dwell in the house of the Lord.
The healed man knows one thing: that Jesus has transformed his life.
Mary chooses one thing: to sit at the feet of Christ.
Paul does one thing: reaches forward.
What is the one thing that could activate and reignite excitement and joy about life with Jesus?
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
