Just Between You, Me, & God 8-20-2012

I often get easily distracted. When I was growing up we didn’t have ADD and the myriad of other initials that indicate you have a hard time paying attention. We just called it daydreaming, easily excited, high spirited, lazy, or just can’t pay attention. Let’s see, where was I, Oh yeah, distractions. I often wondered why they put windows in schools if they don’t want you to look out of them. One of the leading causes of car accidents today is some kind of distraction, not paying attention to what you’re supposed to be doing as parents and teachers used to put it. We have the radio blaring, eating or drinking something, texting or talking on the phone, yelling at the kids or other drivers, talking to the traffic lights, trying to see what’s going on in the other cars, etc. I was always told that you can’t do two things at once, like walk and chew bubble gum. 

Yet now, if you are not a multi tasker you are deemed inadequate to keep up. We continue to pile task onto task onto task. We keep planners or PDA’s to help keep up with everything so that we don’t forget or get farther behind. In the process we are forgetting about personal relationships. I’ve seen kids in the same room texting each other instead of have a simple conversation. People with Facebook accounts have hundreds or thousands or some even millions of “friends”. I thought a friend was a personal acquaintance, someone that you actually knew face to face and they knew you, and your parents had to know their parents or you couldn’t be friends. Oops, seems I got distracted again. It happens when I pray also. I start out talking to God about something really important and the next thing I know, my mind has wandered a hundred miles off course and I’m not even praying anymore. Jesus had the same problem with the disciples in the garden. Luke 22:45-46, “When He (Jesus) rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, He found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. “Why are you sleeping?” He asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” There are distractions and temptations all around us. Our Churches today are struggling because people have found too many distractions to occupy their time instead of gathering and worshiping with other believers in an effort to refocus their attention on what’s important and to receive some guidance for the coming week. Hebrews 10:25 tells us, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another---and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” What are the distractions in your life that are keeping you from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ or, has Jesus just become another distraction in your life? Jesus gave you His life that you might have life everlasting life; why not give Him some of your time. Pastor Dean

Pastor Dean Hanssen is the Ministries & Outreach Pastor for LHF. He is a really awesome guy and--ooh look! A bunny!