Devotional Song: ... Go to this link … Please take the time to take in a video of the group 4Him singing… The Basics of Life, … reminding us of how we, in this world, have drifted so far from the truth and what’s really important in life … Then USING THIS LINK any reader can hear the lovely song, Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, sung by Michael W Smith, leading in worship with the admonition to keep our focus on the Lord to minimize the distractions of this world.
Highlight Passage Luke 10: 41-42 [NKJV] …
41 And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. 42 But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
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Highlight Context - Luke 10: 38-42 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus’ friend, Martha, was easily distracted by good intentions, but misguided attention …
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Reference Passage #1: Isaiah 26: 3 [NKJV] …
3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
Reference Passage #2: Luke 9: 23 [NKJV] …
23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. ... "
Reference Passage #3: Romans 12: 1-2 [NKJV] …
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
… Our life is our worship; … hence it should be undistracted by the world …
My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread devotional entry, authored by Bill Crowder, makes reference to a common, modern-day reality which illustrates how easy it is now-days to get distracted in this world of information overload, texting-while-driving, and smart phones [see attached photo].
And then Crowder takes his readers (me) back to the time when Jesus was visiting friends Lazarus and his two sisters Martha and Mary; and how (in the Luke 10 passage) Martha gets distracted by her well-intentioned, but selfish, desire to serve her guest, Jesus; … but as Jesus points out to Martha, Mary kept her focus of attention on her Lord with her undistracted worship. And when I took in Crowder’s highlight scriptures from that story, I immediately thought of how easy, especially in today’s world, and as Michael W Smith sings in the linked song, it is to take our eyes off of Jesus. The Apostle Paul exhorted believers, in Romans 12: 1-2, to make our life focus the surrender of our worship … to become “living sacrifices,” not letting the world take our mind/hearts away from our primary focus on our Lord.
So, as we meditate here today, especially taking in the truth from the Scriptures above, we must ask ourselves whether, as the other song above states, … do we need to get back and focus our worship and living on “THE BASICS” of life? Do we need to turn our eyes more readily back and focus on Jesus, not allowing the world to distract our living worship? Personally, I need to redirect my focus, as did Mary, and avoid letting good intentions, but distractions, as did Martha, to get in the way of my sight set on Jesus.
But that’s why I’m here today; and it’s why I’ll be here tomorrow.
My Prayer for Today … O Lord, … Help me to stay focused with my life on Your will, Your ways, and Your word. … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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