The other day I was having a conversation with my wife.  I was listening to her, or so I thought, and had to look up at her and say, “I’m sorry could you repeat that?”  You see, I was allowing myself to be distracted by my phone.  And I had to admit and confess that I was not listening to her, but rather was looking at my phone.  Now I am sure that many of you would come back with a response like, “I am really good at multi-tasking.”  Or maybe, “It could be important, you know work?”  And some would even dare to retort, “Oh yeah, well you should see how many times she is distracted by her phone and not listening to me!” 

Each of those are only excuses.  They really are not good reasons for interrupting conversations with people.  You might ask, “What’s the big deal?”  And in today’s culture so many people are used to being ignored by people looking at their phone when they are talking to them so it may not be that big of a deal.  But let me ask you a question.  How do you feel when someone is making eye contact with you, is asking you clarifying questions, and is not tempted to look at their phone or anyone else for that matter?  The reality is two options: they are paying attention to you because of a disagreement, or they are in love with you!  Okay, there also is the one that you are interviewing for a job, but that’s not as exciting.  I think we can all agree that this is becoming more rare and so it means a great deal to us when someone actually pays attention to us.  As a matter of fact, it is a really good way to show someone that you genuinely care for them by making eye contact and not allowing yourself to be distracted.  Just yesterday I made a conscious decision not to look at my phone when I was with my young grandchildren because I do not want them to think that I love my phone more than I love them and am truly interested in them! 

Being distracted is one of the many tools Satan uses to cause pain and divisiveness in our lives.  C. S. Lewis captured this very well in his book, “The Screwtape Letters.”  This book, written in 1942, is a series of letters from a senior demon, Uncle Screwtape, to his demon nephew, Wormwood.  The letters discuss the best way to have demonic success with his “patient”.  He refers to God our Heavenly Father as “The enemy” and the Devil as “Our father down under”.  In chapter 12 Lewis writes this:

 “A few weeks ago you had to tempt him to unreality and inattention in his prayers: but now you will find him opening his arms to you and almost begging you to distract his purpose and benumb his heart. He will want his prayers to be unreal, for he will dread nothing so much as effective contact with the Enemy [i.e., God]. His aim will be to let sleeping worms lie.

As this condition becomes more fully established, you will be gradually freed from the tiresome business of providing Pleasures as temptations. As the uneasiness and his reluctance to face it cut him off more and more from all real happiness…you will find that anything or nothing is sufficient to attract his wandering attention. You no longer need a good book, which he really likes, to keep him from his prayers or his work or his sleep; a column of advertisements in yesterday’s paper will do. You can make him waste his time not only in conversation he enjoys with people whom he likes, but in conversations with those he cares nothing about on subjects that bore him. You can make him do nothing at all for long periods. You can keep him up late at night, not roistering, but staring at a dead fire in a cold room. All the healthy and out-going activities which we want him to avoid can be inhibited and nothing given in return, so that at least he may say, as one of my own patients said on his arrival down here, ’I now see that I spent most of my life in doing neither what I ought nor what I liked.’ The Christians describe the Enemy [God] as one ’without whom Nothing is strong’. And Nothing is very strong: strong enough to steal away a man’s best years not in sweet sins but in a dreary flickering of the mind over it knows not what and knows not why, in the gratification of curiosities so feeble that the man is only half aware of them, in drumming of fingers and kicking of heels, in whistling tunes that he does not like, or in the long, dim labyrinth of reveries that have not even lust or ambition to give them a relish, but which, once chance association has started them, the creature is too weak and fuddled to shake off.

You will say that these are very small sins; and doubtless, like all young tempters, you are anxious to be able to report spectacular wickedness. But do remember, the only thing that matters is the extent to which you separate the man from the Enemy [God]. It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing. Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick.  Indeed, the safest road to Hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without signposts.”

You see, distractions in life are one of Satan’s sneakiest tactics.  He does not care how he destroys us, just that he keeps us from loving God.  And I am confident that we all are aware of how in current culture we spend countless hours being distracted for entertainment or just distraction’s sake.  Satan is having victory with this strategy.  So, my challenge to you and to myself is to discipline ourselves from being distracted when we are with others.  Be all-there when you are in the presence of other people.  Don’t give in to the urge of allowing trivial disruptions to rule your thought life.  Being distracted when you are engaging with your loved ones is not respectful.  But there are even more severe consequences when you are distracted in your time with God.

I am fully aware that time in God’s Word and time in prayer can be impacted greatly with distractions.  I am amazed at some of the things that pop into my mind when I am reading the Bible.  Some of these things I have not thought of in many, many years.  And many times, they are stupid, ridiculous things to even think about.  When Satan is looking for a distraction, it seems that any distraction will do.  A verse that comes to my mind is from Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God.”  While it is clear that this is instructing us to stop and focus on the Lord, it also is saying stop striving and let Me do the work I want to do.  We are to slow down and take time to be with God, do not be so hurried.  I know that if you do practice to slow down and spend non-distracted time with the Lord it will become your most favorite time of the day!  But make no mistake, there is a battle going on for you to #1 not be distracted, and #2 not try to strive for your own desires in this time with God.  The most success I have found in this area is by taking the time and asking the Lord to quiet my heart, and to give me focus on Him and His Word.  But I must say this again, it is a battle and will take determination to enjoy sweet time with your Savior.  What I am really saying is that we need to be ALL-THERE when we are having time alone with our Heavenly Father.  Ask the Lord to help you!  Make this time a priority.  Come up with a plan and do it!  Look at how your time is wasted each day and make a deliberate decision to spend quality, focused time with God.  You will never be sorry, and neither will those around you when you are more able to reflect the Lord in your life to those you spend time with. 

Blessings,
Randy Karlberg