Adding to or distracting from

Hi how are you all this week? I am good and have just been to a conference for work on innovation which was quite interesting. One of the themes that came out of it was what is truth? We might explore that topic in one of my next posts.

What I really feel challenged on at the moment and what God is talking to me about is are the things I’m doing adding to or distracting from my purpose in God. I think this is a really relevant question in the society we are living in. The time is short and seems to be speeding up and we know the return of Jesus is near. So how should we be spending our time.

I am not talking about everyday things like working, going to school, eating, sleeping, shopping and chores- I am talking about how we spend our free time. I want to look at a verse in the Bible before I expand on my thinking. The verse is found in Hebrews 12:1b which states:

Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us and let us run.

Just to be clear those weights we carry are different to sin. Sin has been dealt with on the cross and we need to repent of it. Weights are those things we carry that we need to lay aside. Let’s look at some examples:

1. Is my time on social media adding to my relationship with Jesus or is it distracting me from the call on my life? A lot of times I find myself scrolling needlessly which is distracting me from my purpose. It is also putting a weight on me I don’t need to carry- pictures of others perfect families, children in ministry, the latest fashion, how many followers others have compared to me etc. These are weights that are not in accordance with my purpose that I shouldn’t carry. Therefore they are distracting me.

On one of my social media platforms I have mainly Christian women and ministries. Their writings, quotes and words from God lift me and add to my life so they are good.

2. People’s expectations are another weight we carry. Are our friends and close acquaintances adding to our lives by helping us and speaking into our journey or are we just having coffee and speaking gossip which is distracting me from God.

3. Technology- we have already talked about social media but what about other technology like Netflix, television, movies, music etc. Are they adding value to our lives or distracting us from our purpose? I am not saying don’t watch movies and listen to music. That is between you and God. What I am saying is are we just mindlessly doing these things or are they adding value to our lives?

This week let’s take a stocktake of our activities and time. Are they adding to or distracting from? If they are distracting from, ask God to show you this and ask for His help to find activities that add to your life. It will be a more rewarding and fulfilled life.

Bless you heaps

Karen