Introduction
We are always tempted into novelty and distraction. Social media and other people are always trying to claim a stake of our focus. We are however, much more distracted by our own thoughts.
Worry, anxiety and all the emotions that the enemy tempts us with, all have one goal in mind. To take us out of the moment. If you think about all the thoughts that consistently comes up and steals your focus and motivation, you will realize that they always try to pull you into worrying about the future or dwelling on the past.
“Distractions must be conquered or they will conquer us. So let us cultivate simplicity.”
– A.W. Tozer
Anything to make you absent minded. Anything but being fully present. This is because our lives intersect with the Devine in the present. The present moment is where we find God. Learn how to take control of the moment, to be fully present. Then you will make a habit of meeting with God.
“Seek the Lord and the strength he gives!
Seek his presence continually!”
– 1 Chronicles 16: 11 (NET)
In The Past
“Reality is harsh to the feet of shadows.”
– CS Lewis, the great divorce
In the preface to The Great Divorce, CS Lewis talks about an analogy of a man who travels back in time. And being there, he finds sandwiches so hard that they can’t be eaten. Grass so hard that it is impossible to bend when walking.
The past is unmovable. No matter how much you strain or regret, you will not be able to so much as move a blade of grass in the past. The only way to redeem the past is in the present. You can’t fix the past, but it’s in the moment where you build from the past into the future. Don’t let the past distract you from being present in the moment.
18 “Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.
– Isaiah 43: 18- 19 (NIV)
In The Future
Unlike the past however, the future is completely moveable. The future is so filled with potential, that it is impossible to know what the future holds. This can cause a lot of anxiety. The future could bring prosperity or desolation. Love or hate. Regret or contentment.
Dwelling on all the potentiality of the future, however, takes away all the influence we have over the future. The way we influence the future is through the current moment. Where you end up in the future is completely dependent on what you do right now.
Think about it this way. If you want to go to the gym or exercise. But you constantly beat yourself up about not working out this morning or try to say that you will exercise later when you are more motivated. We all know that this is a recipe to never exercise again. The only way to work out, is to take control of the moment, and go exercise now.
This is how everything in our lives work. We access the potentiality of the future through the moment. All we have in the future is what we build in the moment. If you allow the enemy to steal your focus away from the moment, be it into the past or worrying about the future, then you will lose control of the future. If you take control of the moment, you will have a lot more control over the future. And for the part you still can’t control, trust in God. He loves you and wants to build you up into the future, but He also wants you to be self-disciplined and in control of yourself.
“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.”
– 2 Timothy 1: 7 (NIV)
Cultivate a rhythm of being completely present. Don’t be distracted by the past or the future.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
– Matthew 6 :34 (NIV)
In The Moment
Now we know that we can’t live our lives with our attention drifting between future and past. But why do we need to be present? Why do we need to live in the moment?
People define their lives by the extraordinary. People like to think of themselves as the person that went on that vacation all those years ago. As the person that had that great achievement once, or the person striving for that achievement. All these aims however, are completely hollow. These extraordinary things are just a very small percentage of our lives. Our lives are so much more tilted towards the ordinary moments.
Let me give you an analogy, that Dr. Jordan Peterson talks about, as an example. If you were to eat dinner with your household every night for an hour. Then that is 4% of your day, just eating dinner. That’s 7 hours a week, 28 hours a month, 336 hours a year. Now suppose you live for 50 more years. Then you will spend 16 800 hours, or 700 days just eating dinner.
Now if you spend dinner time arguing or being absentminded. Then 4% of your life will be absent minded and unpleasant. If you don’t control the moment, the moments will build together. And then your whole life will be out of your control.
“7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”
– Galatians 6: 7- 8 (NIV)
Now this might be a bit scary and overwhelming. It certainly is for me. How quickly and easily we can lose control of ourselves and our whole lives. But this is also very motivating when you start to be present and to take back control. If you want to exercise and you walk for 15 minutes a day. Then 1% of your life is under your control. If you read the bible for 15 minutes and pray for 15 minutes, every day, then another 2% of your life has completely changed. All the moments add up. Be present and in control. Don’t let life pass you by.
“11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
– Romans 12: 11- 12 (NIV)
So how do we take control of the moment?
Finding God In The Moment
Have you ever had a conversation with someone who was not completely present. Someone who is absentminded and thinking about other things. Or just constantly thinking about what they want to say and not focusing on what you are talking about. Very quickly, while talking to someone like this, we completely lose interest in the conversation. What does the conversation matter if they are absent minded. Someone who is not present is immovable. Nothing anyone says can influence them.
This is what we are all like when we are absent minded. Nothing God says can influence us if we are not present in the moment. That is why we pray.
“8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”
– 1 Peter 5: 8- 9 (NIV)
We pray to bring our concerns to God. To petition God for help, strength and intervention. To ponder at God’s glory and to glorify Him. But prayer is a conversation. Prayer also pulls us into the moment as we ask God to speak into our lives. To listen for His direction and conviction. We need to be present, otherwise we are immoveable. But in the moment, if we reach out to God, we find Him. And He changes our lives.
“The value of persistent prayer is not that God will hear us, but that we will finally hear God.”
– William McGill
Dedicate your life to radically living in the moment and in consistent prayer. Don’t live absentmindedly. But in every situation, turn to God, and listen for His input. If you find yourself out of control, and you’re letting your focus shift away from the moment to the past and the future. Take a deep breath, reach out to God and pray. Prayer takes us out of the future worries and past regrets, and grounds us in the solid foundation of the moment. Then you can reach for God, invite Him into the moment and He can speak into your life.
“We please God most, not by frantically trying to make ourselves good, but by throwing ourselves into His arms.”
– A.W. Tozer
Conclusion
In everything you do, seek first the presence of God. Dedicate yourself to being of sober mind and being present in the moment. In every situation listen for God’s voice. Invite God into your life and into this moment. Above all other distractions, let us seek His presence.
“Your Glory God is what our hearts long for
To be overcome by Your Presence Lord”
John
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Wow! This message really spoke to my heart. We are constantly in a state of anxiety about everthing everyone is expecting from us, trying to be there for all the people that depend on us. We need to ground ourselves more, force ourselves to experience and be present in every moment. And ultimately to find God in every moment… so that we can take control of our lives and experience what God intended for us xx
This is an amazing message! It’s so true that sometimes we focus on the unchangeable past that we do not see and feel for God presences in the here and now! I love the part that says -be sober minded in the present. When being sober minded we will acknowledge God presences and life in itself will be more pleasant.
Thank you for this i am in a spiritual battle at the moment with all the things happening around me. This message is an eye opener. We are nothing without God and our ways are not God’s way. Seeking God in all situations bad and good.
Hey Kimmy, allow me to give you a prayer for endurance.
Lord, thank you for noticing Kimmy in her hardship. Give her the continued strength to endure. As she faces unending trial, be with her Lord. Lead her and keep her safe. Let her cling to the promises you gave her Lord. That you will reward faithfulness. Let faithfulness be her first priority Lord. Let her face these trials boldly, knowing that you are using them to shape and refine her. That she may become the person You want her to be. In Jesus name, Amen.
This is truly an amazing message! Be present in the moment, stop worrying about the future and there is nothing you can change about the past! We are constantly worrying about things that we cannot control, and God tells us over and over again give your troubles and worries to me, I will carry them for you. Trust The Lord with your worries and live for the moment! Why worry about something you have no control over? If The Lord is with you, there will be no more fear or worries about anything! Trust the Lord with your life and start living!