Hi friends,
Recently, I was asked by a new participant this question:
How do you keep up with everything and stay on track with God?
There’s no perfect answer to this question. As humans, we’re always liable to get off-track with God. We’re easily distracted, often tempted, and have limited capacity.
The best guide I’ve found for these questions is Brother Lawrence. His book, The Practice of the Presence of God, is a gold mine of wisdom. (I’ve organized it into a course available within the Uncommon Pursuit Academy).
As Brother Lawrence once said,
I’m not suggesting that we should forcefully constrain ourselves. No, we should serve God in a holy freedom. We should carry out our duties faithfully, without stress or unrest, gently and calmly bringing our mind back to God whenever we notice it straying from Him.
He also wrote,
Make it your task to keep your mind in the presence of the Lord. If it sometimes strays and separates from Him, don’t be too upset: unrest and worry tend to distract the mind more than focus it; the will should bring it back calmly.
I like how Brother Lawrence knew that he was already God’s beloved. Instead of attacking himself for failing, he treated himself as he knew God did: with gentleness, forgiveness, mercy, and care.
In other words, it’s more important that we learn how to get back on track than it is to try to perfectly stay on track in the first place. Perhaps there will be dozens of times a day that we have to remind ourselves to remember God. That’s normal, ok, and to be expected.
With that in mind, here are three ways we can keep our focus on God:
First, don’t think of your spirituality as another task to complete.
Instead of asking, “Did I have my quiet time?” ask yourself, “Am I loving God?” It’s more important that our hearts worship God throughout the day rather than whether or not we complete a particular activity.
As we love God, we will want to find time to read the Bible, pray, or sing a worship song. But we want to prioritize our hearts over our to-do lists.
Second, don’t think of your tasks as a distraction from your spirituality.
Brother Lawrence washed dishes. He could have said, “Well, I’ll try to focus on God once I’ve cleaned up the kitchen.” But instead, he decided to pray while he washed the dishes. He said, “Our sanctification doesn’t depend on changing our actions, but on doing what we usually do for ourselves, for God’s sake.”
Third, keep your spiritual life simple.
Brother Lawrence said, “Our only task is to love and find joy in God.” That’s it.
He didn’t say we must read four Bible chapters a day. As I’ve tried to love and find joy in God, I’ve realized that it is most possible by keeping it simple.
For instance, I find it helpful to pray small prayers like, “God, I love you” or “Lord, I need you” or “Help me.”
Sometimes it’s as simple as remembering, “God is with me and God loves me.” I’m not doing anything; I’m noticing and becoming aware of who God is and what God is doing. It’s an act of faith, to trust that he has kept his promises.
Rather than forcing ourselves into rigid spiritual disciplines, by God’s grace, and in his loving presence, we can cultivate a natural conversation with God throughout our day.
After all, we do not initiate, sustain, or complete our relationship with God. It is God’s uncommon pursuit of us that saves us, grows us, and one day will bring us into his presence forever.
I’d love to hear… What’s your favorite way to gently return your attention to God?