Distracted Discipleship

Psalm 57 addresses the topic of being steadfast, giving attention to the things of God:7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. 8 Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. 9 I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. 10 For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, And Your truth unto the clouds. 11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.

The Bible tells us that the mind that is stayed, or fixed, on the Lord is kept in perfect peace.   Steadfastness is a characteristic that we can put into practice in our spiritual life, as we remain fixed, or anchored on God, His presence, and His ways.   In this age of multi-tasking and multiple distractions, I believe the Lord desires for us to have a single focus, not thinking about or trying to do other activities while we are praying or studying God's Word, and remaining connected to our source of power and wisdom as we execute our daily agendas.

Here are some encouraging words from Psalm 112:
5 A good man deals graciously and lends; He will guide his affairs with discretion.
6 Surely he will never be shaken; The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance.
7 He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is established; He will not be afraid,

These is so much to get us off track in our lives - and if we are in a consistent state of distraction or preoccupation, we might miss out on what God has in store for us.   The development of a steadfast heart, and established heart, is so important, I believe, if we are to exhibit the character of Christin and through us.  He is our rock, our anchor, our firm foundation, and He will help us to respond Biblically and not react rashly when we are facing life's interruptions. 
1st Corinthians 15 can be a great word of encouragement to us as we seek not to be "distracted disciples":
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Be careful what you do behind the wheel; take a lesson from the mayor of Toronto

UPI.com reports that Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says he probably was reading while driving along a city expressway as a Twitter photo indicates, and chalks it up to being a "busy" man.

Toronto police Sgt. Tim Burrows posted on the department's official Facebook page Tuesday afternoon that reading a piece of paper while driving is not a violation of the distracted driving law, but a driver could be charged if "the driving behavior constituted a specific offense."

The officer urged Ford to "please get a driver."

"It is obvious that you are busy enough to require one and no amount of money you are saving by not having one is worth the life of one of your citizens," Burrows wrote.

The CBC reports that the mayor has been accused of other driving miscues, including illegally dialing and talking on his cellphone.

As a public service, I do want to remind you that texting, emailing and instant messaging while driving is now  illegal in Alabama, with violators facing fines and possibly higher insurance rates.  And, law enforcement officers can pull you over for those specific violations, not when you are committing another violation.  Alabama is now one of 39 states to ban texting while driving.   

The Washington Examiner quotes the state Public Safety Department as reporting that distraction from an electronic communication device caused 1,256 accidents in Alabama in 2010, including five deaths. That was 1 percent of the accidents investigated in Alabama in 2010 — the most recent year with statewide statistics available.   Montgomery has an ordinance prohibiting "distracted driving", which also includes talking on a cell phone.

I am sure that many of us think that we can "multi-task" behind the wheel of a car, but consider this:

Research on distracted driving by UAB shows the typical driver looks away from the road for 4.6 seconds while texting. When driving 55 mph, that's enough time to travel the length of a football field.

Well, I firmly believe that some of us might qualify as "distracted disciples", and there are some stiff penalties for that type of activity.   If we are attempting to multi-task in our spiritual lives, then we can find ourselves  less sensitive to the leadership of the Holy Spirit, we may become more vulnerable to temptation, and we can actually miss out what God has in store for us.   And, I really believe that if have other things on our minds, the process of mind renewal is not nearly effective.   So, we can examine ourselves - when we pray, are our minds really with the Lord or a million miles away, thinking about loads of other things.  As we read God's Word, are we tuned in to His frequency or do we allow the enemy to distract us and we lose sight of what the Lord would teach us?   So, we are challenged to put aside distractions and steadfastly pursue the ways of God.