About Jesus  -  Steve Sweetman

Easily Distracted

We sometimes claim we have no time to do many of the important things in life.  I admit, some people are that busy with the important things of life, but, more often than not, it is not a matter of having no time.  It is a matter of knowing how to prioritize what is needed to do in the time we have.  Beyond that, we are easily distracted by less important things that prohibit us from doing the important things in life.

I recall a past age where life had far less distractions.  Fingers weren't glued to cell phones with their minute by minute interruptions.  We had dial-up, party-line, wall phones.  That meant we shared the phone line with our neighbour, and if he was talking on his phone, we had to either wait him out or tell him to stop talking. 

We had eleven channels on our, black and white, box-like TV.  We actually had to do the unthinkable, that being, rise from our couches, walk all the way to the television, and manually turn a knob on the TV to change the channel.      

Leaving the past behind, the word "intentional" is a popular word in western-world Christianity these days.  If someone is said to be intentional, he deliberately and purposely goes about his tasks.  Some people are intentional by nature, while others are not.  Whether you are inherently intentional or not, I think Jesus had intentionality in mind when He encouraged those around Him to put His kingdom on the top of their list of priorities. Matthew 6:33 reads:

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

The apostle Paul also encouraged his readers to live a life of intentionality.  Ephesians 5:16 says this:       

"... making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil."

The words "making the most" in Paul's statement is a present Greek participle.  That bit of Greek grammar places the emphasis on one, by his very nature as being so purposeful that he makes the best use of his time for the Lord's sake.  I suggest, then, that even if you are not intentional by nature, the Scriptural mandate for you as a Christian is to become more intentional for Jesus than you presently are.  I am sure the Holy Spirit can help you with that.   

If we believe we live in an evil age, as Paul believed he lived in, then, like Paul, our desire will be to live a purposeful, intentional, life.  We will make the best use of our time as we serve Jesus.  With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will not allow the enticements of our culture to distract us from our God-given mission, which by the way, has eternal implications.    

1 Corinthians 3:10 and following tells us that we will stand before Jesus some day and give account, not of your faith, but what we have or have not done for Him.  Hopefully we will not be ashamed of ourselves on that day, as the apostle John wrote about in 1 John 2:28.   

"So now, little children, remain in him so that when he appears we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming (CSB)."

In light of this eternal reality, being intentional about serving Jesus becomes the most important thing in our lives in this age of being easily  distracted.