10 things that can distract us from God (part 1)
What do you think are the first 5 distractions on our list?
1. Money
I’m sure you all could have guessed this one would be on this list. Money itself is not an interference in our walk with God… the love of money is. I think the following passage sums this up quite nicely:
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 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".(Matthew 6:25-34)
So in a nutshell, trust God, He will take care of us. That doesn’t mean we should quit our jobs, or not earn money, we just need to realise that God is more important, and is far more capable of taking care of us than we are.
2. Media
This is probably one of the biggest distractions for me personally right now. Just the other night, I realised I haven’t spent much time praying this week, but instead of going and praying, I said to myself I’ll do it later because the game is on, and I've got something else I want to watch after that.
It is so easy to get caught up in the media. And when I say media, I’m referring to the Internet, TV, movies, music, video games, newspapers, magazines…all of it (broad, I know…but hey, I’m only making a list of 10 things to here, so I can be a bit broad, right?). Everywhere we turn, some sort of media is right in our face. And very often, it’s littered with immorality.
For some people, Facebook is their huge distraction, for others it's TV or music. For me, it's video games. Give me the right one on the right week, and I won’t spend a free second with God (sad….but true). I could literally go on and on about the media, and how distracting it is. The key to overcoming the media is to be wise in what we watch, read, play, etc, and how much time we spend with it. We should always be willing to give it up, and quite honestly, some of the things we indulge in (in the media), we really need to give up. If something is pure filth, we shouldn’t be giving it any time to influence us, no matter how funny, sexy, or “cool”, it is.
3. Church/Religion
Believe it or not, church & 'religious activities' can be HUGE distraction from our walk with God. Church does not do this intentionally, but we can easily let it hinder our relationship with God.
In some churches, people have developed the idea that we need to pretend to be perfect at church. We become afraid that if we show our weaknesses and struggles, we’ll become outcasts. Don't let that be a distraction! We are supposed to help each other, hold each other accountable, pray for each other, and love one another!
For other people, church activities, youth group, Bible studies, can be a way of making us feel like we are right with God. Don't be distracted! We are right with God because of what Jesus has done for us, not because of how many church services we attend.
To keep church from becoming a distraction from God, make sure you are pursuing God, not pursuing “church perfection”. Love your brothers and sisters, be open to people, and don't be quick to condemn others when they fail!
4. Relationships
I’m sure you knew this one would be here. Every kind of relationship has the potential to fall into this category. Friends, parents, siblings, spouses, girl/boy friends, children, co-workers, bosses, etc. We can allow any of these relationships to distract us from God. It is our relationships that are our connection with the world, and it is our human nature to have them, but when we allow any one of these relationships to become more important to us than our relationship with God…well, they become a distraction.
Remember, God calls us to love one another (1 John 3:11), so when we do, it is an act of obedience to him. But don’t forget about God in the process.
I would have to say the relationship with the most danger of becoming a distraction from our walk with God would be that of a boyfriend, girlfriend, or spouse. These relationships in their nature, demand the most time, and that is why it is extremely important that they are centered around God. If they aren’t, you will see your walk with God spiralling downward.
In a nutshell, relationships are extremely important, but our relationship with God is of the utmost importance. Remember that!
5. Routine
This is a common thing I allow myself to get distracted by all the time. Does God have a place in your daily schedule? Far too often, we just squeeze God in when we have spare time (I am extremely guilty of this). It's so easy to get caught up in all the things we have to do, like work, eat, sleep, etc. (I often find sleep getting in the way!).
So make sure spending time with God is the first thing your put in your routine, not the last!
Come back tomorrow to find out what the next 5 distractions are!
Article originally published at LivingforJesus.com
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