Focus on what is Eternal

Psalm 119:33-40

Verse 37  Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to Your Word.

    We talked yesterday about how we can find comfort and stability if we look to the Word for comfort.  Today we look at what it really means to be focusing on the Word in a world of distractions.

    We live in a world full of many distractions.  Not even counting the people in our lives that are vying for our attention there are so many things that seem important in life.  We may not claim them as important but the way we live says that they are important to us.  Take our phones for an example.  How many of us can hear a call or notification come in and not immediately pick it up and check to see who it was?  Or how about how many of us have to have a radio or TV going as background noise?

    The truth is our culture is stimulus saturated.  There is even music playing in most stores.  Being over stimulated in life is one of the reasons we find it hard to sit still and dig into the Word of God.  The psalmist’s request in our key verse isn’t just about wanting to be drawn away from the evil things in life.  He is pointing out that he knows some things in our lives are worthless when compared to the worth of time spent in the Word.

    The psalmist says that he wants his life preserved according to the Word.  By saying this he is acknowledging the way our lives are in need of this life-giving source.  The hope that is given in the Word is something that will keep us going.  But this hope isn’t something we will easily find if we are allowing our attention to be divided and taken away from the thing that is really important.

    The truth is that if we don’t find peace in the reading and meditating on the Word we will never find it in the things of the world that give faux peace.  No amount of calming music or focusing on the happy things of life will bring the true peace that the Word of God will.  And that is where life really begins.  When our focus is on the Word it shows that we have our attention on the eternal, abiding God of the universe.  So where is our focus, on the fleeting things of this world or the living Word of God?

Making It Personal

    How easily distracted are you?  What is your biggest distraction?  What do you need to do to make your time in the Word distraction free?

Making It Personal Kids

    What does it mean to be distracted?  Can you be very focused on more than one thing at a time?  What is the most important thing to be focused on?

Closing Prayer

    Father, please help us fix our eyes on You and Your Word.  Thank You for drawing us to Yourself.  In Jesus’ name, amen.