When Distractions Take Over

Are you easily distracted? When someone is talking, do you find your attention is diverting to something or someone else? When you are trying to pray, praise or just meditate, do you find yourself thinking of other things? I have heard some people say that they really dislike when they become distracted. At first, I did too. It really bothered me. But then I began to think about it from a different perspective.

What if God is trying to reach you about something? Sometimes, I am so busy that it is hard for me to just sit and think about nothing. But, when God tells me to set apart time just to be alone with Him, He wants me to sit and listen. How does He communicate with me? Through my thoughts. One day, as I was meditating on God, my mind began to swirl around priorities that I had going on in my life. I found I was lost in my thoughts. I would try my hardest to redirect my thinking back to just being alone with God and not thinking about anything else. Hard as I tried, I could not be still in my thoughts. Then, I thought to myself, maybe God is trying to show me something through my scattered thoughts. So, I began praying that God would reveal to me what He wanted me to know about my priorities. I prayed that He would be very specific with me. As I thought about each one, I realized He was asking me where He was in the priority. Had I yielded it to Him? Had I asked Him to help me complete it? Had I asked Him to help me be a good steward of my time and talent as I worked on that priority? Had I praised Him for helping me accomplish all the other priorities I had completed?

In Psalm 46:10, God says “Be still and know that I am God” How do we “be still” when our mind wanders? The Hebrew translation of the word still is rapa, meaning “to slacken, let down, or cease.” When we get still before God, we are to cease everything we are doing. This phrase means to stop frantic activity, to let down, and to be still. We are to make Him the priority in our human priorities. God is speaking when we are still. He is present in our time of ceasing. He is brought to the forefront when we slack off, and “let down” our façade and expectations. When we are before God, there is no frantic mindset.

Let’s take a moment and ask God to shift our mindset to be centered on Him. Let’s ask Him to help us stop frantic activity, let down and be still in His presence. You will find peace, joy, and freedom in this.