A few years ago, while visiting the state of New Mexico, my wife and I decided to visit a lesser-known national monument called “Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks.” We drove to Albuquerque, spent the night at a motel, and got an early start. Our goal was to get there when they opened and be the first ones on the trail. Our plan worked out great! We were the third car in the parking lot, and we hit the slot canyon trail soon after.
For about an hour, we had it to ourselves! However, while it was a one mile out and back trail, it took us almost two hours to complete. The reason why it took us so long, was that we kept getting distracted by our surroundings. Every twist and turn of the trail brought us to a new photo and selfie opportunity. All these distractions kept us from moving faster and finishing sooner.
I don’t know about you, but I often start my days with great intentions. My goal is to draw closer to the Lord and spend more quality time with Him. Yet sometimes, just as it happened at Kasha-Katuwe, I get distracted by my surroundings and fail to fulfill my spiritual goals. I’m not saying that all distractions are intrinsically bad, but all of them can keep us from spending more quality time with Jesus.
What are we to do if we live highly distracted lives? The answer may be different for different people. In my case, I know that if I want to have quality time with the Lord, I must be early to bed and early to rise. Being the first one up in the morning has its rewards. The house is quieter, and so is my mind! Jesus seemed to understand this. We read that “In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.” (Mark 1:35 NASB). Jesus’ days were filled with distractions, so He protected His devotional life.
But what if our distractions are in our minds — our thoughts, memories, and daydreams we allow ourselves to dwell upon? The Bible has a solution. The apostle Paul tells us that we can destroy anything that tries to take supremacy over the knowledge of God, by “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Cor. 10:5 NASB). How does this work? Whenever a distracting thought comes, surrender it to Christ through prayer, instead of becoming enslaved or controlled by it.
While we’ll continue to be bombarded with distractions throughout our lives, we must not allow these to control us and keep us from reaching our goal. As the apostle, we should forget what’s in the past and reach forward to the future, “toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 3:13-14 NASB). Now that’s worth fighting for!
— The Rev. Abner Aguilar is pastor at the Hutchinson Seventh-day Adventist Church.
