Distracted
Distracted: unable to concentrate because one's mind is preoccupied.
So, here I am. Distracted.
I'm supposed to be enjoying my day off. Instead, I am feeling pulled, almost anxious about what to do with this gift of free time. Should I read that book or should I do laundry? Should I watch TV and be lazy or should I clean the house? (It really needs it.) Should I clock in and do some work or should I leave that project for this weekend? Better check my Instagram and see what everyone else is doing—or, in other words, distract myself with anything at this point so I don't have to make a decision. The minutes tick away and I become frustrated with myself for wasting them. I end up taking what was supposed to be a blessing (a couple days off to do whatever I wanted) and somehow twist it into a nagging, anxious-filled burden of hours that need to be filled just perfectly, or else.
Stupid, right?
The bottom line is, I'm distracted. I can't do one thing without the feeling I should be doing something else. I'll regret this if I do that...but if I do this then I'll regret that. It's exhausting. Never fully present or fully satisfied with what I'm doing at the moment. What is that?
Distraction: a thing that prevents someone from giving full attention to something else.
God has been speaking to my heart about distraction lately. In order to hear His still, small voice, I need to be fully present, in the moment. Undistracted. The enemy wants nothing more than to distract us, to pull us away with little, non-eventful, minor things that really don't matter in the long run. A distracted person is not a fruitful person. They cannot fully accomplish one thing well because they are distracted. Pulled in several different directions at once.
If you were getting brain surgery would you want your surgeon watching TV, folding laundry and reading a book, as well as operating on you? No! You would want his full, undivided attention. Living for God is not brain surgery (thank God), but it does require focus and sensitivity to His leading.
I love the story of Mary and Martha. When they invited Jesus over to their home, Martha was running around, distracted with the task of making everything "perfect" for their guest. (Been there, done that. I can so relate with Martha.) But Mary chose the important, the eternal, by sitting at Jesus' feet while He taught. (I like to believe I'm becoming more like Mary.) So, poor Martha, bless her heart, basically rebuked Jesus and told Him it wasn't fair—He needed to tell Mary to help her. (Sounds like my kids.)
I love Jesus' response. He was so tender and corrective all at the same time:
“Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.” (Luke 10:42 The Passion Translation)
There's that word again—distracted. In other words, Martha was all worked up about things that didn't really matter in the long run. Is the food warm? Is the floor clean? Is there enough chairs for everyone? Do the napkins match the table cloth? Does my hair look okay? (I added a few of my own in there.) In other words, is everything just "perfect?"
Probably not.
But who said it had to be perfect?
Can I rant for a moment? I'm really sick of the word "perfect." There is no such thing (besides Jesus). But still, we work ourselves into a frenzy trying to fit this illusion the world sets before us. You've got to be skinny, fashionable, responsible, funny, witty, sexy, healthy—do-it-all and look effortless while doing it. Do more crunches, read more books, tweet more comments, get more followers, get more Botox, get the new iPhone, get new clothes, get new shoes, get a new car, get a bigger house, raise perfect kids, eat low fat, eat high fat, eat less carbs, eat all organic, eat paleo, eat protein, be nicer, be stronger, be prettier, be natural, be smarter, be funnier, be bolder, be gentler, be...be anyone but you! Meanwhile, I'm over here eating non-organic potato chips on the couch in my unfashionable pj's watching tv because I feel like I can't measure up to the world's standards of "perfect." Peace, I'm out.
Honestly, I'd much rather have an informal meal with close friends served from dented pots on mismatched plates and silverware in their messy, lived-in home than a perfectly set, prim and proper table with a bunch of stiff, plastic people that live in a museum and can't be real and let their flaws show. But that's another post for another day...back to distractions.
Jesus didn't rebuke Martha for serving, he rebuked her for being distracted. In other words, she was getting worked up about all the minor details and not even living in the moment. Martha! Martha! Martha! (Insert Jan Brady reference here.) Seriously though, she had the Son of God in her living room. Hello? How often does that happen?! Snap out of it, Martha! But unfortunately, she was distracted by the temporary, not focusing on the eternal. That's how the enemy distracts us. He gets our eyes focused on all the little things that won't matter in the long run and we take our eyes off of the One, true, most important thing in our life—Jesus.
So, as I sit here, trying not to be distracted, I choose to remember there are more important things in life to concern myself over. I tell my soul to hush up and just enjoy this moment. I thank God for this time with Him. Then I take some time to really think about Jesus' answer to Martha—I made it personal and applied it to myself. (I love to make scripture personal. I put my name in it, like Jesus is speaking straight to me...because He is! If you've never done this, I encourage you to try it. It changes the way you read it.)
While I fight off these many distractions, Jesus gently says to me:
"Heather, my beloved Heather. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Discover the one thing most important by choosing to sit at My feet. Be undistracted. It is a privilege to sit at My feet attentively, absorbing every revelation I share." (Paraphrase of Luke 10:42 TPT)
Mmmm. That's good.
He's so good to me.
I think I'll just sit here for awhile at His feet and soak that in...everything else will just have to wait.
So, here I am. Distracted.
I'm supposed to be enjoying my day off. Instead, I am feeling pulled, almost anxious about what to do with this gift of free time. Should I read that book or should I do laundry? Should I watch TV and be lazy or should I clean the house? (It really needs it.) Should I clock in and do some work or should I leave that project for this weekend? Better check my Instagram and see what everyone else is doing—or, in other words, distract myself with anything at this point so I don't have to make a decision. The minutes tick away and I become frustrated with myself for wasting them. I end up taking what was supposed to be a blessing (a couple days off to do whatever I wanted) and somehow twist it into a nagging, anxious-filled burden of hours that need to be filled just perfectly, or else.
Stupid, right?
The bottom line is, I'm distracted. I can't do one thing without the feeling I should be doing something else. I'll regret this if I do that...but if I do this then I'll regret that. It's exhausting. Never fully present or fully satisfied with what I'm doing at the moment. What is that?
Distraction: a thing that prevents someone from giving full attention to something else.
God has been speaking to my heart about distraction lately. In order to hear His still, small voice, I need to be fully present, in the moment. Undistracted. The enemy wants nothing more than to distract us, to pull us away with little, non-eventful, minor things that really don't matter in the long run. A distracted person is not a fruitful person. They cannot fully accomplish one thing well because they are distracted. Pulled in several different directions at once.
If you were getting brain surgery would you want your surgeon watching TV, folding laundry and reading a book, as well as operating on you? No! You would want his full, undivided attention. Living for God is not brain surgery (thank God), but it does require focus and sensitivity to His leading.
I love the story of Mary and Martha. When they invited Jesus over to their home, Martha was running around, distracted with the task of making everything "perfect" for their guest. (Been there, done that. I can so relate with Martha.) But Mary chose the important, the eternal, by sitting at Jesus' feet while He taught. (I like to believe I'm becoming more like Mary.) So, poor Martha, bless her heart, basically rebuked Jesus and told Him it wasn't fair—He needed to tell Mary to help her. (Sounds like my kids.)
I love Jesus' response. He was so tender and corrective all at the same time:
“Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.” (Luke 10:42 The Passion Translation)
There's that word again—distracted. In other words, Martha was all worked up about things that didn't really matter in the long run. Is the food warm? Is the floor clean? Is there enough chairs for everyone? Do the napkins match the table cloth? Does my hair look okay? (I added a few of my own in there.) In other words, is everything just "perfect?"
Probably not.
But who said it had to be perfect?
Can I rant for a moment? I'm really sick of the word "perfect." There is no such thing (besides Jesus). But still, we work ourselves into a frenzy trying to fit this illusion the world sets before us. You've got to be skinny, fashionable, responsible, funny, witty, sexy, healthy—do-it-all and look effortless while doing it. Do more crunches, read more books, tweet more comments, get more followers, get more Botox, get the new iPhone, get new clothes, get new shoes, get a new car, get a bigger house, raise perfect kids, eat low fat, eat high fat, eat less carbs, eat all organic, eat paleo, eat protein, be nicer, be stronger, be prettier, be natural, be smarter, be funnier, be bolder, be gentler, be...be anyone but you! Meanwhile, I'm over here eating non-organic potato chips on the couch in my unfashionable pj's watching tv because I feel like I can't measure up to the world's standards of "perfect." Peace, I'm out.
Honestly, I'd much rather have an informal meal with close friends served from dented pots on mismatched plates and silverware in their messy, lived-in home than a perfectly set, prim and proper table with a bunch of stiff, plastic people that live in a museum and can't be real and let their flaws show. But that's another post for another day...back to distractions.
Jesus didn't rebuke Martha for serving, he rebuked her for being distracted. In other words, she was getting worked up about all the minor details and not even living in the moment. Martha! Martha! Martha! (Insert Jan Brady reference here.) Seriously though, she had the Son of God in her living room. Hello? How often does that happen?! Snap out of it, Martha! But unfortunately, she was distracted by the temporary, not focusing on the eternal. That's how the enemy distracts us. He gets our eyes focused on all the little things that won't matter in the long run and we take our eyes off of the One, true, most important thing in our life—Jesus.
So, as I sit here, trying not to be distracted, I choose to remember there are more important things in life to concern myself over. I tell my soul to hush up and just enjoy this moment. I thank God for this time with Him. Then I take some time to really think about Jesus' answer to Martha—I made it personal and applied it to myself. (I love to make scripture personal. I put my name in it, like Jesus is speaking straight to me...because He is! If you've never done this, I encourage you to try it. It changes the way you read it.)
While I fight off these many distractions, Jesus gently says to me:
"Heather, my beloved Heather. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Discover the one thing most important by choosing to sit at My feet. Be undistracted. It is a privilege to sit at My feet attentively, absorbing every revelation I share." (Paraphrase of Luke 10:42 TPT)
Mmmm. That's good.
He's so good to me.
I think I'll just sit here for awhile at His feet and soak that in...everything else will just have to wait.
