The Spiritual Discipline You Need When You’re Distracted - Your Nightly Prayer - November 11

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The Spiritual Discipline You Need When You’re Distracted

TONIGHT’S SCRIPTURE

“Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Colossians 3:1

SOMETHING TO PONDER

“Squirrel!”

It’s easy to get distracted.

In the amazing Pixar movie Up, we meet a dog with a voice-activated technology that voices his thoughts. While talking, he often yelled, “Squirrel!” And we laugh because we know dogs, and we also know ourselves, an extreme commentary on how easily we get distracted, as well.

A dog makes it funny, yet often, very serious things distract us. Perhaps we’ve been wronged. Or we’re in a very busy season at work. We can even get “distracted” by the work of ministry, stealing our time from needed intimacy with God.

Our spiritual enemy knows this, and he will find “good” things to distract and isolate us. The enemy wants to separate us from God.

We must be intentional about setting our hearts on what is unseen. God is unseen, and so are his benefits. Therefore, the unseen is more real than what we see.

Paul writes to the Colossian church about this. Why do you operate according to worldly principles? Why act like there’s power in what is touched and eaten? This can’t resist the sinful nature. (Colossians 2:20-23) If anything, it strengthens it.

The apostle shares the solution: a heavenly focus. The work of Christ is finished and eternal. We’ve already died to sin in Christ (Colossians 2:20); we’ve already been raised with him. Our life is already in the right hand of God in Christ. This is a finished work (Colossians 3:1).

Our effort, therefore, must be in setting our hearts on what is heavenly and real. Choose to turn our attention, desire, love, and longing to the things above, things that will never die or fade.

The result? We change how we live in hope, love, faith, truth, and transformation. We live in a miracle, like walking on water, as long as our eyes are fixed upon Jesus.

An adage says a person is “so heavenly minded they’re no earthly good.” The Bible disagrees. Unless we’re heavenly-minded, we can’t be any earthly good. Let us set our hearts and minds on what matters.

YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER

Heavenly Father,

Fix my heart on Jesus and protect me from every distraction that pulls me away from you. Teach me to seek the things above and treasure what is eternal over what is temporary and dying. Remind me that Christ has finished the work and my life is secure in him alone. Show me your truth, fill my heart with hope, and infuse my actions with obedience so your light shines through me every day.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON

1. What are some things in life that easily distract you and make you “too busy”?

2. How have you fallen into times when you lose sight of prioritizing time with Jesus?

3. How can you be intentional and consistent with setting your heart on things above?

Reflect on tonight’s prayer and share how God met you there. Join the Your Nightly Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.

Britt Mooney Britt Mooney lives and tells great stories. As an author of fiction and non-fiction, he is passionate about teaching ministries and nonprofits the power of storytelling to inspire and spread truth. Mooney has a podcast called Kingdom Over Coffee and is a published author of We Were Reborn for This: The Jesus Model for Living Heaven on Earth as well as Say Yes: How God-Sized Dreams Take Flight.