Distraction robs opportunity

The mouse had impeccable timing. Every evening, just as the children’s worker was telling her audience about God’s love, the rodent would scurry out onto a roof brace in the rustic, camp chapel, capturing everyone’s attention by scampering back and forth across the beam.

A coincidence?

I think not. It seemed more like a subtle, diabolical, challenge to God’s word. The speaker, realizing the gravity of the situation, would recapture our attention by warning that Satan was trying to steal a priceless treasure from us.

Whether the speaker’s or my assessment of the situation was accurate, the fact remains that numerous opportunities pass us by every day because of distraction. Satan knows that our attention can easily be diverted, and will use this to rob us of God’s truth. Even a hapless rodent can become a means to his diabolical end. Satan does not have to act with violent force to rob us. He merely captures our attention while valuable opportunities slip past unnoticed; maybe never to be experienced again.

In a world full of options, maintaining focus on the truly important issues of life can be a challenge. Despite what we may be told, not every distraction is an opportunity. Sometimes they are disasters about to happen, or they are diversions making us oblivious of the real issues of life.

What holds your attention today — God’s message or a mouse? Is it revealing the will of God for your life, or is it robbing you of His grace?

Pastor Mark Holmes is an ordained minister in the Wesleyan Church and has served the Darrow Road Wesleyan Church since 1997.

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