Distractions
There is a town near Daytona Beach called Port Orange, and when you go down the main street, you would never know there are large companies and businesses all around. The city mandates you can only have signs at a certain height, and there must be a tree buriers between the road and the industry. There are a couple of reasons they have put this in place, one to continue the beauty of the city and two eliminate distractions.
Driving down highway 98, 90 or I-10 everywhere you look something, or someone is trying to get your attention. You pull into a gas station, and the first thing that happens the TV screen on the pump starts advertising for Mountain Dew and telling me I could sure use a candy bar or a snack. You look anything up on, and before you can see anything, there is an Ad you can watch or skip in 5-4-3-2-1. Facebook, Msn, Yahoo is the same way. One thing that aggravates me is when you are watching your favorite TV program, and it goes to commercial the sound gets 30% louder to make sure you are paying attention. Hate that. I understand this is the world we live in, and I love technology, but there is a time and place.
It’s hard to believe that just 25 years ago Google was not a thing. To travel there was a thing called “roadmaps” which got you to your destination. Cell phones were beginning, and mostly the rich could afford them, and they were the size of shoeboxes. Hard to believe the operating system in our phones now is better than the computer, which navigated Apollo 13 back to earth. The unbelievable thing is people functioned. I know that is shocking. Please understand I am not against any device, which makes our lives more accessible. We all get anxiety when we lose our phone or our wallet, and when we find them, we have the big sigh of relief. But we cannot let them be the center of our universe.
“Jesus Prays in a Solitary Place
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
Even in Jesus’s day, he was trying to find solitude, and he was being pulled from every direction. How many times have we turned off the radio, or sat down outside and just wanted to have some quiet time only to be pulled in a different direction?
It’s the relationship we develop here and now with the father which will give us peace.
My devotional reads: As you sit quietly in my Presence, remember that I am a God of abundance. I will never run out of resources; My capacity to bless you is unlimited.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus”
It is not impossible to take out the distractions in our lives. It just takes us focusing on what is essential. Take the time to be in God’s presence.
Mike Conrad serves as our Worship Director. When he's not preparing for worship or playing an instrument, he enjoys spending time with his wife boating and fishing. Learn more about Mike here.
