“Now we cannot...discover our failure to keep God's law except by trying our very hardest (and then failing). Unless we really try, whatever we say there will always be at the back of our minds the idea that if we try harder next time we shall succeed in being completely good. Thus, in one sense, the road back to God is a road of moral effort, of trying harder and harder. But in another sense it is not trying that is ever going to bring us home. All this trying leads up to the vital moment at which you turn to God and say, "You must do this. I can't.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Have you ever been faced with something that makes your ears hot? That situation that has you so wound up that hearing a certain person's voice or something they said, gets your pulse racing and your face hot. You beg God to do something. Maybe it's words said by a supposed friend. Maybe it's a stupid decision your child or even parent is making. Maybe you see how one person is taking advantage of another and your hands are tied. You can't stop thinking about it and the next thing you know you are pacing through your house having a conversation with this person in your head. Clever words come to you and they beg forgiveness. An hour later the fight starts all over again. You are consumed by it and your begging God for direction and He is silent. What am I supposed to be learning here? Why is this happening? Especially when I have so many other things that need my attention? If God says anything at all it's something like, "You need to do your Bible study lesson, class is in one hour." I KNOW, I KNOW, GOD, but what are you going to do about this other thing? I know this happens to all of us and I just may have the answer. Devil's distraction. You end up skipping bible study because you're just not ready and you have too much on your mind. Who won?
I think our society is so spoiled, so set on what we want that we are more easily distracted than ever. I heard a pastor speaking yesterday on "pastor burnout" and how this condition is worse than ever in this country and other countries too. People are constantly crying out to pastors, "Help me!!" instead of going to God. We have become dependent on them to be our God. Only the pastor can help me with this because it is just so big. This pastor I was listening to even said, "Can't you get through six days without my help?"
Flesh! Our flesh, me, me, me has become so big we are killing our pastors with our constant need. People listen to a sermon and think, if so-and-so would hear this message and "get it" and change, my life would be easier. This comes from a society of people who have trouble focusing even when they clean their house. They put toilet bowl cleaner in the toilet and then throw in a load of laundry, they go back to the sink and the dish water is cold. There is a difference between multi-tasking and being distracted.
Many of say, "I don't have enough time to spend with God", but don't know what they did all day. The enemy is at work. We hear someone said something about us and we become so consumed that we get nothing done all week, but we have spent hours thinking about what we would like to say to this person. Maybe this is why Jesus says to be quick to forgive. Can you imagine? We forgive and get back to the toilet bowl that has been soaking for days. Makes sense. Many times I have asked God what I am supposed to be doing and He will ask me, "What is the last thing I told you to do?" Hmm, well, last Thursday you told me to read the book of Acts. I haven't done that yet. Why? Well, so-and-so is doing this or that and I have been trying to find an answer to what I am supposed to do. Forgive and read the book of Acts, just may be the answer.
The Holy Spirit said to me a while back, "Instead of focusing on the "Ow" that Satan is doing in your life, focus on the "Wow" Jesus is doing. The most important commandments that God gave us was to love the Lord and love our neighbor as ourselves. Anything that draws our attention away from this is a "Devil's Distraction". Give it to God and get back to Him.
Focus is one of the enemy's greatest weapons against us. He gets us focused on ourselves instead of God. What do I need? What will make me feel better, more comfortable, and even happy? Jesus will, He is your answer. Being comfortable, I have found, is not one of the promises from God. In fact He says this will not be easy. There is more growth through being uncomfortable, stepping out of our comfort zone. If you look back over your life, when did you become closer to God? The times He and I had great conversation and I learned the most from Him, was when I was going through dealing with my past, everything that had happened to me. When things are good, we don't need Him as badly. Let's be honest. He is not a 911 God and I have to ask myself, does He allow 911 situations to get us to talk to Him? How many times have we spent time with a friend and when it's over we realize all we did was complain about all the bad? I enjoy my time with friends a lot more when we focus on all that God is doing in our lives. Even if there is a real trial and not just a "Devil's Distraction" focusing on how God is taking us through it is a much more enjoyable conversation.
Even watching sermons and reading books God has asked us to read, can be a distraction from time with Him. He wants relationship. A relationship grows with time spent together. Hard times are easier when we talk to God about them, instead of running through our phone list of friends. Instead of whining to God, ask Him what you are to be learning. If He says read, maybe your answer is in what He is asking you to read, or maybe the distraction is just a distraction and it's keeping you from learning something that He has for you that has nothing to do with what you are focusing on. Joyce Meyer always says, "Go to the throne, not the phone"
I have to ask God sometimes, "Is there something I am supposed to be learning or is this a "Devil's Distraction"? We do learn and grow through our trials. Many of us realize that, but the enemy likes to imitate God, so we have to ask God, "Am I in class right now? Or staring out the window?" Confusion is from the enemy, clarity is from God. We can find peace when everything is falling down around us, if we stay in God's word and stand with Jesus.
Is this a lesion with a reason or an attack to hold us back?
A friend of mine just now posted this on Facebook,
Wise words....
"consider this, what your going through is not a punishment....it's just preparation for what's to come next..."~Amen! - Carie
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