It Starts With Me Looking Up

1 Corinthians 7:35 (ESV)

35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

Our generation has great potential to reach and impact the world around us but this won’t happen as long as our eyes are looking down – fixed to our phones, our shoes, ourselves. If you want to make a difference in your family, at work, your school, your sports team and the world, then it starts with you looking up.

Technology is a great thing. It allows us to communicate with people all over the world at any moment. Imagine if we didn’t have the gift of technology and we had to communicate without it. Because we have such easy access to technology, it can quickly become a distraction. Instead of our eyes and hearts being focused on the people around us and on the opportunities, God gives us, we can become infatuated with our phones and spend most of our time scrolling timelines.

While Jesus faced many potential distractions (storms, hunger, critics, lack of sleep, betrayal, etc.), He didn’t allow these distractions to draw His attention away from what God had called Him to do or from the people God had called Him to minister to. With our eyes looking up, we will see more clearly the people God has brought into our lives who we can show the love of Jesus to. Only with our eyes looking up will we be able to bring change to the world as we recognize and respond to the people that God has put on our path.

Take the time to make a plan to prevent yourself being distracted by things that distract us from Jesus.

Jesus wants to use your life to impact and influence the world around you so start looking up!

Dear Lord, help us to look up to You. Help us to recognize the things that distract us from You. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

The Distracting All Around

Proverbs 22:13 

The sluggard says, “There’s a lion outside!

    I’ll be killed in the public square!”

A state trooper pulled over a guy on a lonely back road and said, "Sir, is there a reason why you're weaving all over the road?"

The guy replied, "Oh officer, thank goodness you're here! I almost had an accident! I looked up and there was a tree right in front of me. So, I swerved to the left and there was another tree in front of me. Then, I swerved to the right and there was another tree in front of me!"

The officer reached through the side window to the rear view mirror, and explained, "sir... that's your air freshener."

Like that guy, we spend much of our lives "dodging obstacles" which are really not obstacles at all. We worry (and lose sleep) over things which never materialize. We hesitate to take action because we are fearful of what "might" happen. Our imagined fears keep us from driving down the straight and narrow ("What will they say? What will they do?")

Was there really a lion in the streets? No, but any excuse will work when you don't want to do something, even dodging imaginary obstacles.

Dear Lord we pray that we won’t hesitate when obstacles are in our way? Help us to completely trust in you today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Diamond and Distractions

Hebrews 12:1-2 (New International Version)

 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

I can learn a lot from my dog.

Our Dalmatian, Diamond, is a people pleaser. Her only motivation is to know that what she is doing pleases you. She's actually a pretty amazing dog!

Except.

Except when she forgets we exist!

And unfortunately, her memory isn't very long.

Or maybe it is her concentration that is poor. I'm not sure. But whatever it is, the minute something new catches her attention, she forgets that we walk the face of the earth.

The distractions come in many forms. Often then are odors, or "scents" as they are called in the dog world. They can also be visual, such as the sight of a chicken or a cat, and they can be auditory as well, such as a call or whistle, or perhaps the chatter of a squirrel.

Take the "come" command, for example. When Diamond has her eyes on me, I have no problems with her. As soon as the word is out of my mouth, she comes running. Until her nose catches a particular odor that MUST be sniffed, that is. Then nothing will make her come. Or maybe the distracter is another dog, in which case, she doesn't stop running, she simply changes her direction. It is safe to say that until she once again focuses her attention on me, I have lost her completely.

Naturally, in such times, our runs cannot progress and precious time is wasted.

I might be tempted to get aggravated at her (and I have succumbed to that temptation on many occasions!), but I have to admit that she is no different than I am!

Just as she loves me, her master, and wants to please me, I love Jesus and want to please Him. And as long as my attention is fixed on Jesus, there is no problem! But I am also easily distracted, and my distractions come in many forms as well. Some are temptations, some bear the label of "pride" or "selfishness", and some come in even more coy packages such as self-advancement, even ambition. Still other distractions come by focusing too much on circumstance, and others may include addictions or just plain "having fun".

Now, my distractions may not seem as silly as smelling that particular spot on the post, or seeing a squirrel in a tree; but they are still distracters. They still take my mind off of Jesus, they make me stop depending upon Him, and sometimes they make me forget that He even exists.

Just imagine what God could accomplish through us if we didn't waste so much time on petty distractions! It isn't for nothing that we are told:

The next time you are tempted to be aggravated by a dog who thinks that a scent is more important than obedience, let it remind us of something in our life that is keeping our focus away from Jesus!

Dear Lord we pray today that we would not let the distractions of life get in the way of us keeping our focus on You. In Jesus’ name, amen.