O God, Deliver Me from Distraction

     These past days, the news has been particularly distracting…if not downright deafening.   It is as if nothing else matters.    Nor are people of faith immune to such onslaughts, particularly when it comes to discerning what is important.

     We know there are matters that require our immediate attention.  There are circumstances that necessitate reassessing and reprioritizing our time and resources.  Then there are those situations that challenge our most deeply held values.

     But how do people of faith discern what is best, when the distraction becomes a cacophony?

     Thankfully, we are not without help in this regard.    Could it be that the very practices we are asked to do as Christians: regular worship, communal and contemplative prayer, reading and listening to scripture, offering our gifts, laboring for justice, fellowship and caring for one another – is what puts us on the path to deliverance?  Could it be that when we engage in these practices, we are allowing God’s Spirit to work within us?    

     Yes, these past days, if not weeks and months, have been distracting.    Yet God’s deliverance can strengthen us, teaching that all consuming distractions and the demands that go with them – are not in keeping with following Christ.  Instead, God-in-Christ offers each of us an alternative: a daily decision to live by God’s mercy, justice and peace, steadfastly putting each of us on the path that leads to life. 

Author: Jessica McArdle

These are dark and corrosive times. As a writer and ordained minister with the United Church of Christ, I use prayer, poetry, reflection, and scripture to re-align our embattled spirits with the uniqueness and urgency of our God-given identity and call. View all posts by Jessica McArdle