The Dangers of Distraction

Matthew 6: 33-34 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Christopher Columbus once said, "By prevailing over all obstacles and distractions, one may unfailingly arrive at his chosen goal or destination." The irony aside, this quote speaks to the heart of a challenge we all face in our walks with God. We all have a chosen destiny, not selected by us but by God. We are all on a journey through this world. A world that God has already explained to us we are no longer a part of:

Dear friends, I warn you as "temporary residents and foreigners" to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. 1Peter 2: 11 (NLT)

We are temporary residents and foreigners, or as the NIV says , aliens and strangers. During this journey as strangers we will face many distractions. If we allow the distractions to pull us away from the destination then we become ineffectual for the work God has called us to. There are typical distractions we face and the Bible outlines them for us so that we can learn to resist them better in our pursuit for all God has for us in this life.

The first typical distraction we face is our surroundings. The things we face every day can serve to distract us. Peter faced such distraction one day on the lake of Galilee. The Gospel of Matthew paints the picture:

Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. About three o'clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. Matthew 14: 24-25 (NLT)

The surroundings the disciples faced that early morning were treacherous. They were too far away from land, a strong wind had risen and they were fighting against the heavy waves. Isn't that just like our lives sometimes in this world? We feel so far away from safety and a storm has arisen against us. The waves of the world are crashing around us, swamping the little boat we call our life. But Jesus is always out there in our storm; calmly walking over it towards us. Showing us that what appears treacherous to us presents no threat to a child of God!

Peter asks Jesus to tell him to come to Him. Peter wants to realize that the winds and the waves are meaningless in the presence of almighty God. He recognizes that he cannot do it on his own, so he asks God first to bid him to come to Him. Peter then gets out of the boat, a topic books have been written about, and starts to walk towards Jesus. Peter is doing so much right here. He is solely focused on the Lord. He asks Him to do the impossible because he recognizes His ultimate sovereignty. He sees he can do nothing if God has not instructed him to do so. He puts his faith into practice by stepping out of the boat. So much right. We too can go through this walk doing so much right. We can seek the face and counsel of God in the storms of our lives. We can acknowledge His sovereignty and realize we are nothing without Him. We can face our storms with the full assurances of God only to fall to the distractions of our surroundings; as Peter would do:

But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted. Matthew 14: 30 (NLT)

He knew that God was bigger than the storm he was facing. He knew that God had called him. He knew he was walking on water! But all of it fell away as he saw the strong wind and the waves. He became distracted by his surroundings and took his eyes off of Jesus.

We too will sink in our own circumstances if we choose to focus on them instead of the Author and Finisher of our Faith. Like Peter if we believe the waves crashing down around us instead of Him who walks above them, we too shall sink in this life. This is how Christians can fall into despair or hopelessness. Even though in His presence is fullness of joy we can see believers struggling to see past their waves to find His presence.

Another typical distraction we face is the distraction of what we do not have. The enemy wields this against the children of God all the time. As long as the devil can get you focused on what you do not have, then you cannot appreciate all God has given you. Western Christianity has not helped the cause by continuing to focus on prosperity as if it is something contained in this life. Blessings should not be viewed as something that we desire but rather what we already possess. Take King David. A man after the very heart of God. He wrote the majority of the Psalms and through his lineage Christ would come. David had it all because he followed God correctly. He did not allow distractions to interfere. Even though he had a word that he would be king, he refused to lift his hand against God's anointed. David always put God first:

David said about him: "'I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Acts 2: 25

David always saw the Lord before Him. The things of God always came before the things of David and because of that, God was always at his right hand and nothing could shake him. That is how we are supposed to walk too! In the supreme confidence that comes from always seeing God at our right hand. But it starts with putting Him first and one night David was shown something that he did not have and when he looked to his right hand, all he saw was Bathsheba. The first lesson we learn here is found in the first verse of the story:

In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king's men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem. 2Samuel 11: 1

David was King! He should have been off at war but he stayed in Jerusalem. And because he put himself somewhere he should not have been, he fell. If we put ourselves in places we know we should not be, we are inviting the enemy to attack us. David saw Bathsheba and lusted her. God tried to sway him back to what was right. He found out she was married and his lust did not care. He found out that her husband was off at war for him and his lust did not care. He found out that her husband was righteous and his lust did not care. David had everything but the devil showed him something that he did not have and he was distracted from everything he knew that was right. He would become an adulterer and murderer. He would lose his kingdom and two sons. God would restore him but there was a heavy price to pay for the distraction he allowed into his life. God sent the Prophet Nathan to rebuke David:

Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave your master's house to you, and your master's wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 2Samuel 12: 7-8

Beloved, God has given us all so much and His desire is to give us even more. Realize this too whatever we do not have is also divinely decided by God! There is a reason why He withholds what we think we want or need. Remember, He sees all time! He sees the end result. The next time the enemy is distracting you with what you do not have; focus on all God has given you and then when you look to your right hand, He will be there and you will not be shaken by the distractions of the devil.

Thirdly, we can be distracted by fear. The Prophet Elijah had seen it all. He had seen the Lord feed him by the ravens to avoid starving. He had seen the Lord supernaturally ensure the widow's oil and flour would not run out during a famine. He had seen the Lord use him to raise the widow's child from the dead! He had just watched as God defeated the 450 prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel. Yet right after all these things, he heard the Queen Jezebel wanted his head and here was his reaction:

Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day's journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. 1Kings 19: 3-4

We too have seen the mighty miracle workings of the Lord in our lives. Divine healings, changed doctor reports, provision from nowhere, our enemies scattered before us. Yet there we too can be like Elijah. The slightest thing comes against us and we break into fear. We forget all that God has done because we are distracted by what we are afraid of. We are afraid of our past even though God has forgiven it. We are afraid of our present even though God is in it. We are afraid of our future even though God has secured it. We hear the whispering of the enemy and we choose to believe him over the promises we know God has already made and despite all He has already done. We run away like Elijah. No matter what Jezebel threat we face today God is bigger! Remember where the fear comes from:

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

Well, if it didn't come from God, guess where it came from? Focus on all God has done and all He has promised instead of what the enemy is offering you to consider being afraid of.

Lastly, we can become distracted by our very service unto God. At the house of Martha and Mary, Jesus was speaking and Mary was at His feet listening. Martha was distracted:

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me." Luke 10: 40 (NKJV)

I have seen too many well intended Christians confuse their Mary with their Martha. They confuse their service unto God with their walk with God. Look, Martha is important the work of the Kingdom must be done! But Jesus clarifies:

And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her." Luke 10: 41 (NKJV)

Martha was so busy working for God, serving Him, that she failed to listen to Him. God is speaking to us all the time and if we are not careful, we can ignore Him as we busy ourselves with His business. Martha allowed her service unto God to distract her from her relationship with God. That is a trap we too can easily fall into. It is a matter of where we are focused. What are we seeking?

And that brings us back to our key verses today. Seek God first and everything else will be taken care of. If we are seeking God first then we do not take our eyes off of Jesus when the storms of life intensify and the waves crash over into our boat. If we are seeking God first then we understand that if we do not have something then THAT is for our own good as well. We will not be distracted by what we do not have and we will be appreciative for the blessings He consistently gives us. If we are seeking God first then we will remember all of the mighty miracles He has already done in our lives when we are tempted to fear. We will remember that His perfect love casts out all fear. Lastly, if we are seeking God first then we will be sure to tell the difference between our walk and our service. We will be careful to not be so distracted by working for God that we fail to listen to Him, fail to learn from Him, fail to love Him.

Christopher Columbus may have prevailed without reaching his desired goal but we cannot. God has a work for us to do and we cannot afford the dangers of distraction.

Reverend Anthony Wade October 12, 2010