DISTRACTED!

 

I don't know about everyone else, but it is so easy for me to get distracted from what I am doing. There are so many outside sources of stimulation that it is always a battle to focus on what really matters. 

A good analogy is DISTRACTED DRIVING.  At the moment we get behind the wheel, our main focus should be driving. We are in control of a speeding bullet, for me the emphasis is on "SPEEDING." This vehicle demands our full attention. That is not always the case. The radio, food, text messages, passengers, and the weather can keep us from focusing on what is really important, controlling the vehicle. I have noticed when I ride my motorcycle, I pay a lot more attention and am less distracted than when I am driving a car. The danger of riding and the exposure to harm helps me stay focused. When I ride a motorcycle I feel my heightened state of awareness. My head is on a swivel and not only do I look for hazards I try to predict them. 

Life is the same way. We are so easily distracted, losing our focus on what really matters.  We lose our focus on GOD's MISSION. Life should be LIKE RIDING A MOTORCYCLE. we should always have our head on a swivel, fulfilling our calling and constantly serving the Lord. I think we try, but the sin in our lives distracts us from doing what we are called to do. Sin keeps us from the mission. 

I was reading Psalm 51 today, a pretty famous passage written by David. Here are several verses that stuck out to me:

"Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love; because of your great compassion blot out the stains of my sins. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin." (Psalm 51:1-2, NLT)

"Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." (Psalm 51:7, NLT)

"Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don't take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation. and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you." (Psalm 51:10-12, NLT)

Do you catch that?

We want a clean heart and joy because we are being distracted, keeping us from obedience. AND the obedience God wants is that we TEACH HIS WAYS so people will return to him. We are not seeking the JOY of OUR SALVATION just for personal gain. We are seeking the JOY because that JOY, when fully realized helps us focus on THE MISSION, ......... bringing others to JESUS. 

Our distractedness, our busyness, our sinfulness, keep us from teaching his ways. THAT SHOULD BE OUR FOCUS. Like riding a motorcycle we should keep our head on a swivel seeking opportunities to share our joy with others. We should seek opportunities to BE GOD's LOVE in this dark world. We should serve, not for reward, but to represent JESUS to the lost, the broken, and the outcast. 

Lord, make me willing to OBEY you so that I might teach others to return to you. NOTHING else matters. Help my own JOY, my own SALVATION, motivate me to GO and serve you in Love, in Grace, and in Mercy. Wash away all the distractions, anything that keeps me from serving you. Amen!

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If you haven't repented of your sin, accepted what Jesus did for you on the cross, dying for your sins, or if you have not committed your life to Jesus, TODAY could be that day. give your life to the Lord. 

"because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." (Romans 10:9-10, ESV)

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