Hi how are you today? I am well and have had a good week. It has been an ordinary week. It is nice to have those where everything is just normal and there are no dramas. How was your week?
In this blog I want to do part 2 of distraction delays purpose. I have posted before on this topic and you can search on the website for it.
Distraction around our lives can delay purpose. It is because we get busy dealing with little things or we get tired and weary and are not faithful in what God has called us to do.
I struggle with this all the time. I am meant to be writing my third book but weariness and distractions come into my life and I find myself not writing for a couple of weeks. Maybe you are so organised this doesn’t happen to you!
The story in the Bible I want to look at regarding this is King Saul. His story is found in a couple of books but I want to look at it in 1 Samuel.
Israel wanted a king like the other nations so God told Samuel that He had chosen one and to go to a certain town and anoint him (1 Samuel 9:15-16).
Just think about this for a minute. God chose Saul to be king over everyone else in Israel. This is amazing! Now I want you to look at you- God chose you for a specific purpose too- one that nobody else in the world can do as good as you and God.
All went well for King Saul for a time and then something happened. In 1 Samuel 13, the Philistine army came against Israel. They outnumbered Israel by a lot and the men of Israel became scared.
Samuel told King Saul to wait 7 days for him to come and sacrifice to God so he could find out the battle plan from God.
However, the men in the army started leaving King Saul and going back home so King Saul decided to take the place of the prophet. He was distracted by his army leaving and forgot that his purpose was kingship only. When Samuel came, he strongly rebuked Saul and told him that the kingship was removed from him and given to another.
This is where the major distraction happened for King Saul. From chapter 18 to the end of the book where Saul died, King Saul was no longer totally focussed on being a king but was focussed on removing David.
1 Samuel 18: 6-9 in the Message Bible states:
As they returned home, after David had killed the Philistine, the women poured out of all the villages of Israel singing and dancing, welcoming King Saul with tambourines, festive songs, and lutes. In playful frolic the women sang,
Saul kills by the thousand,
David by the ten thousand!
This made Saul angry—very angry. He took it as a personal insult. He said, “They credit David with ‘ten thousands’ and me with only ‘thousands.’ Before you know it they’ll be giving him the kingdom!” From that moment on, Saul kept his eye on David.
David could have helped King Saul establish the kingdom and defeat all the enemies of Israel. But Saul was too busy trying to annihilate his “enemy” inside Israel who was not an enemy at all. King Saul was so distracted that he didn’t fulfil his purpose and was known more for chasing David than fighting the enemy armies.
This can happen to us too. Please don’t let the distraction become bigger than the purpose. People and things will always try and pull us away but we need to be on guard. If God has told you what to do, then we just obey. Yes it’s hard to trust God sometimes but that is what we need to pay attention to.
Jesus never swerved away from His calling and neither should we.
What has God called you to do today? If you don’t know; just ask. Just don’t get distracted.
Bless you heaps and keep living the life God intended for you.
Karen
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