The idea of living unplugged is about getting rid of our distractions, so that we can focus more fully on Christ. If you read Luke 10:38-42 you will see the passage about Jesus' visit to the home of Martha and Mary, two sisters. Martha is working diligently to be a good host for Jesus and the disciples. Her sister Mary is just sitting at Jesus' feet listening to his teaching. Martha wants her to help and asks Jesus to tell her to help, but instead Jesus tells Martha that Mary has chosen something better.
The application is clear to me, being with Jesus and learning from him is more important than any other good thing. Of course this calls for balance because if every just focused on learning from Jesus and not on preparing food we would eventually starve. So this does not say get rid of everything that distracts from God, but it does not hurt to reflect on areas that might be getting too much attention and draw us away from God.
So we can work to clear our distracts. The unplugged idea came because a major distraction can be things we plug in: TV, computer, media, video games... However our distractions are not limited to these electrical things. They many be anything, some good, some bad, but all distractions from what God wants us to be focused on.
I know I have wrestled with distractions. I often get focused on details. I regularly work on details because I believe when the details are right the big picture will be clear. This is not always the case, but I feel if I focus on the details that will remove some distractions, so that others can see the big picture better. I need to get better at unplugging my focus on details in order to pay plenty of attention to the big picture.
At the same time, I do need to plug Christ into my details and make sure they are always done for his glory and not for what I hope to accomplish.
Think about your distractions. What might you need to unplug? Or how might you plug Christ into all the activities of your life? Remember that Jesus always wants you to choose what is better. You may have plenty of good things that take up your time, but where are the great things? Give the great things your attention.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
I think I have shared this sotry with you before, James. Many years ago I was stressing to a friend about my family holiday dinner. My biggest stress at the moment was finding the right shade of burgundy candles for the table decoration. After my hysterical rant, my friend calmly asked me if everyone coming to the dinner was expecting that particular shade of burgundy candles on each table. Or were they expecting candles at all? Or was the entire point of celebrating Christ's birth centered around burgundy candles? Do you supposed the Magi were late because they were looking for the right shade of gold to bring? Kinda put me in the place of realizing the reason for the season and reevaluating why we were gathering in the first place. sometimes it has to smack you in the face, right?
Post a Comment