Confidence In Christ: A Devotional For Teen Girls

Distraction

"I lost Jesus in there. It seemed one could be a Christian without being a disciple of Jesus." - Sarah Bessey, Out of Sorts; Making Peace With An Evolving Faith.

Celebrity scandal. Wars. Gun control. Religious freedom. Republicans vs. Democrats. The 2016 election. Chaos. Crime. The economy.

With so many issues in the world, distraction has become one of our most accessible vices. Even on Christian websites, the top news stories are drenched with current events and political jibber-jabber. The nightly news, like an addiction, pulls us in and threatens to keep us there.

I'm as guilty of it as anyone. People and current events fascinate me, and I've spent my share of time online, trying to figure out my stances on various issues. I love finding new information and sharing what I've learned with others, and I believe that learning about people and their unique places and journeys of life can help us to become more caring and compassionate human beings.

An interest in new information is not a bad thing. God wants us to be able to reason and think critically about different matters. Half the book of Proverbs is about wisdom, and the importance of it. Not to mention that God created our brains with unbelievable complexity to process life—both the present and eternity—with.

The problem comes when we become so consumed with the news, life, and viewpoints that we completely miss Jesus. Sometimes, it even gets so out of hand that we end up waging wars with those-who-disagree-with-us-on-topic-XYZ. I've seen this happen a lot during this point in history. Somehow, as a Christian culture we've reduced our faith to politics, rules, and religion, completely missing the amazing otherworldly story that God is writing in our lives. In the name of "being right", we've turned to lecturing, shouting at, and hurting those who we're called to love.

Suddenly, the story of the two sisters from the Bible comes to life, and we live as Marthas instead of Marys. We're worried about many things, but we forget the one big thing.

A vibrant, feeling-alive-I-can-touch-the-sky relationship with Jesus.

Living as a poem rather than an instruction manual.

Loving vibrantly, the way Jesus did.

Sinking into God's peace when the world feels chaotic.

Breathing a sigh of relief and realizing that we don't have it all together, but knowing that Jesus does.

Sometimes, we need to let go of the worries, let go of the troubles, and look up instead of looking around. The world will always be crazy, but we serve a Savior who calmed the waters and walked on them. He can calm storms and raise the dead, and continues to calm the storms inside of us, making us come alive when we feel dead.

Only one person is big enough to do that, for you, for me, and for all of Creation, and that person is our friend, Lord, Savior, and redeemer, Jesus Christ; who bled on a cross so that we could have life forever. The things of this world may not be big enough to calm our seas, but Jesus always is. No matter how menacing the clouds and no matter how loud the storm, Jesus can always calm it.

He always has been, and always will be, more than enough.

Discussion Question - Have you ever struggled with distraction from the world around you? How can we make a consistent effort to keep our eyes on Jesus in the midst of noise?