Have you ever noticed when you start to do something, such as read your Bible, how many distractions come your way? How about when you have planned your time to pray and spend time in God’s presence? How often are you distracted with plenty of other things that eat into that time? Distraction is one of Satan’s most effective tools against us. If we allow it in our lives, it can rob us, in many ways, of the full blessings that God has for us.
Isaiah 26:3 Amp “You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast, that is, committed and focused on You – in both inclination and character, because he trusts and takes refuge in You, with hope and confident expectation.”
How many times have you read this familiar verse without realizing the promise this verse assures us of comes with a stipulation of steadfastness. This means we must be steadfast without distraction, if we expect God‘s perfect peace. We must resist the distractions which come against us, trying to break our single-mindedness, trying to divide our attention into different directions. It’s not always easy but absolutely necessary if we want to remain in God‘s perfect piece. One of the most effective ways to battle against distractions is recognizing them for what they are. This can be difficult since most distractions seem harmless or even seem like good things to do. This is where prayer and wisdom are needed or possibly even godly counsel. We need to be diligent to keep our attention completely focused on God.
When Peter stepped out on the water in Matthew 14, versus 29-31, he had his eyes steadfastly on Jesus. Think of what Peter could have done if he had resisted the distractions around him. It was when he became distracted by the wind and the waves and became afraid, he began to sink. A valuable lesson to us to resist distractions and remain steadfast in focusing only on Jesus.
I know I have experienced times when I heard Jesus calling my name to get out of my boat, step out onto the water and follow Him. I’m sure most of us have heard His voice at one time or another calling us out onto the water. Sometimes I have heard that call and let fear, or a lack of faith keep me in the boat. Sometimes I have, like Peter, made that first step of getting out of the boat but let the wind and waves put fear in my life and became distracted from that steadfast trust in Jesus and began to sink. But sometimes I have stepped out of the boat, kept my eyes steadfast on Jesus and allowed my trust in Him keep me in perfect peace walking with Him safely on top of the water. Is there anything keeping you from getting out of the boat? Are there distractions in your life that you need to resist giving attention to? Are you searching for that perfect peace only God can give? Ask Him to show you areas in your life where you need to eliminate distractions so you can remain steadfast in keeping your attention on Jesus which will result in you being in His perfect peace.
