Distraction

Have you had that experience where one project leads to another, to another, to another? That's what it has been like to replace our refrigerator.  A cabinet had to be removed, that cabinet needed slider drawers I had been using in the bathroom, then we needed something to hold the towels... So instead of blogging and thinking about prayers, I have been traipsing the aisles of Target and Wal-Mart.  There is something wrong with this - those places are so dehumanizing. And I hate buying plastic (needed in the fridge). So, grrrr. But the kitchen is back together with some improvements. And something in this mix even drew me to clean out my adult daughter's former closet..

How does that kind of experience, when we're drawn away from what we desire to do by the daily grind, inform our spiritual lives? I feel gratitude that we can afford to live in the modern world with its conveniences.  I pray for all who live in poverty, distress, and need. But there must be something God has to say to me when the world captures attention and time better spent on the holy.

Creator God, Your kingdom is not concerned with the detritus of daily life on earth. That's one thing I expect to be struck by when I can spend eternity in your close presence. But you must have some agency in our earthly lives. Where are you in my distraction? Are you patiently waiting for me to turn my attention back to You? Are you there in the store with me? Maybe You simply want me to gaze on my fellow shoppers with eyes of compassion. Maybe you want me to recognize You in the employees who work long hours in an ugly environment. Maybe you are asking me to rethink my footprint in this life and reduce my belongings. Bring the right questions into my mind, I pray. Lead me Lord into your path of Righteousness.

Amen