Distracted



Is anyone in your life distracted when they are with you? Maybe at lunch a friend pulls out their cell phone to send a text, or it might be during a meeting when your boss checks to see who is calling or a family member might answer the phone leaving you alone while eating dinner. It doesn’t matter what the distraction, it probably makes you feel unimportant or worthless because the person thinks that who ever they are contacting is more significant than you.

That type of behavior bothers me. I have been taught that no one is more important than the person that you are currently with, so I always try to avoid being focused on the phone when in the presence of another.

On the other hand I have realized that I let other things distract me when I am spending time with God. I have good intentions and get up early to have a quiet time with Him. But often I let other thoughts come into my mind. I might feel the urge to check email or send anyone a birthday wish on facebook or see what message the dinging on my phone says. It can be any number of things and none of them are nearly as important as uninterrupted time spent in reading my Bible, praying, or having fellowship with my God and my Savior.

I wonder if God feels the same way I do about my distracted time spent with Him. Does He get His feelings hurt? Does He feel unimportant? Does He long to have my undivided attention? Does He want to grab my face in His holy hands and gently turn it towards His face so He can speak to me?  Does He desire to whisper in my ear?

The Bible says at least 10 times that God is a jealous God. We don’t really like to hear that about God. It’s not one of His “positive” attributes like love or forgiveness or compassion, but God is jealous when we place more importance on anything other than Him, because these things are idols, not made of wood or stone, but idols of the heart. 

I don’t want to make God jealous; I want to please Him, to let Him know that He is special to me by being totally focused on Him. 

Lord this is going to be hard, but help me to be able to put everything else away when I am in Your presence. Help me to show You the total honor and respect that is due to You.

Deuteronomy 4:24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.  

www.hearthope.org

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