Distractions

There are hoards of things that compete in my mind for the space God deserves. Unlike the Israelites at the beginning of Saul’s reign, my distractions are not responsible for the downfall of nations. They do get me sidetracked from serving God in the most productive ways possible.

The Israelites in 1 Samuel 13 had let the Philistines strip them of their skilled metal workers. At first it probably appeared that it was a small concession for peace to let the Philistines have all the metal workers. The Philistines had basically said, “You will send all your skilled iron craftsmen to us and we will make what you need for you, and we will not come against you in war.” The Israelites were lulled into thinking that it was a good trade. The Philistines, however, were being sneaky and taking away the opportunities for the Israelites to make anything out of metal for their use. This was especially dire when king Saul decided to fight against the Philistines and push them out of the Promised Land. The Israelites were left with wooden implements (mostly farming implements) as weapons, no match for the swords and spears the Philistines had available to them. It is likely that Israelite craftsmen were actually making the weapons that would destroy Israel!

While the Philistines were quietly making it impossible for the Israelites to make physical weapons of war that could be used to fight in God’s name, there are also subtle things sneaking into my life that render me less effective for God. Most of these things are time consumers or time wasters. Some are attitudes and things I allow to corrupt my thoughts and lead me away from God’s truth.

Can you think of any of those things in your own lives? Mindless activities serve a purpose – when they do not interfere with developing a closer walk with God. I enjoy watching television in the evenings when my mind is tired and I’m physically tired out from the day’s activities. Yet I also watch TV when I could be worshipping and praising God, when I could be praying for my concerns or the concerns of others. I often think I’ve done enough and God will let me off the hook for further learning about Him for the day. Yet I am not totally at peace within my soul and therefore there is more space for Him to fill me. That doesn’t happen by watching TV or playing solitaire on my phone.

I want to intentionally change and trust God to help me not let “sneaky” things interrupt my relationship with Him. I want to intentionally be filled with the Holy Spirit in such a way as to be more useful in God’s battles. I don’t want to be caught without my spears and swords.