Many of you know that starting November 1, I play Christmas music in my office. I began doing this years ago back when I worked for the post office. You see, once December 1 hit, the post office was a mad house. It was so crazy busy I never got a chance to enjoy the season. I determined therefore that if December was a wash, I would start in November. No one was going to rob me of my Christmas tunes! I’ve been doing it ever since. December isn’t much calmer serving a church.
The music I do play, however, is primarily soft instrumental. Solo piano, guitar, or soft jazz. The reason being, if someone is singing, I tend to sing along with them. Pay attention to the words instead of what I am working on. Words are a distraction for me. It’s actually the case year-round. January through October my music is new age, piano, guitar etc. I love George Winston, Eric Tingstad, or Liz Story. It’s just on in the background creating a calming atmosphere where I can concentrate on my work.
I feel the same for our connection with the Lord. We can become so easily distracted. Especially with all the access to social media we have today. I came across some great quotes about distraction I can share. “Don’t let the noise of the world keep you from hearing the voice of the Lord.” “If the enemy can’t destroy you, he will distract you.” “If the enemy can distract you from your time alone with God, then he can isolate you from the help that comes from God alone.” “If Satan cannot have your heart, he’ll do his best to distract you.” “When the enemy sends distractions, they never look like distractions until they are finished distracting you.”
Yes, the hustle and bustle of modern life can be very distracting. Remember the story of when Jesus went to visit his fried Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha? Luke writes, “Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.’ But the Lord said to her, ‘My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her’” (Luke 10:39-42).
Martha was so worried about being a good hostess, she was missing spending time with Jesus. The Messiah was sitting in her home, and she was worried about serving figs. We need to be careful. Life can get busy. I understand that completely. But why do you think God was so insistent about resting on the Sabbath? He knew that so many of us would simply work seven days a week. We need to pause. Jesus did. He often went off alone to spend time with His Father. We need to do the same. It doesn’t have to be hours. Take ten, fifteen minutes and read your Bible. Pray.
Did you know that Mother Teresa used to begin her day with prayer every morning at 4:30 am. Yikes! Now, that’s a little early for me but how about whatever time you have your alarm clock set for, just back it up fifteen minutes and spend the first fifteen minutes of your day with the LORD. In prayer or in His Word. Before you check your Facebook page or Instagram account. Before you read your news feed. Before all the distractions of family, school, or work try spending some time with God. Fifteen minutes. What a great way to start.
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Remember you can email praise reports and prayer requests to southchurchprayer@gmail.com. I lift them up every Wednesday at 4:00 pm on Facebook Live.