It has happened to you...

You are talking with someone about something of substance, a topic you both seem to be very attuned to and their cell phone rings, they interrupt you in mid sentence and begin talking into the tiny all important device as if you were not even in the room.  A few minutes go by as they chat leisurely about what sounds like nothing in particular and at last they glance up and make brief eye contact. "Listen I need to go, I am busy right now..." And of course the first word out of their mouth once they have disconnected is ..." sorry."  Then there is usually an explanation about why they thought they needed to take the call and then ..."what were we talking about?" You resume your conversation and before you know it, either the phone rings again, the waitress comes to the table, there is a parade of small children needing a drink of water, tattling, or needing to be rescued. Before long, you are exhausted with the situation and feeling a lot less likely to try to pursue the conversation, and maybe even a little deflated. 

I sat at my desk the other morning with my Bible in front of me, my email devotionals on the screen, my cell phone on my desk.  I read my "God Calling"... looked up the scripture and read that ... then on to "Girlfriends in God."  All the while there are email subject lines distracting me, flashing ads beside the body of the email, my mind races to what I need to do, where I need to go, what I need to get at the store, where is the money coming from for the bills, what the Lord would have me do, etc... I thought to myself the Lord is talking to me, and I can't hear Him because I am so distracted.  No sooner had the thought gone through my mind when the Lord spoke to my heart.  "The cares of this world keep your eyes off me."  

Much to my dismay, I have heard those words before. At that moment I realized that here I sit, trying to hear from the Lord, and can't even keep my mind on the conversation because I was too busy answering cell phones and chasing children, so to speak.  I am supposed to do something that seems so simple..."cast my cares upon Him" and "seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto me" Why can't I ? Why is that so hard? 

  How does HE feel when I can't even take the time and go to a quiet place to be with Him? The Creator of the universe, who never leaves me or forsakes me, who knows how many hairs are on my head, and catches every tear that falls from my eyes.  He attends to my every breath.  He dotes on me because He loves me so much.  Who do I think I am that I can't take my mind off my agenda for a little while to devote to Him, my Savior. To spend quality time in my relationship with Him without having the trivia in my wispy little existence get in the way of just simply being in His presence and immersing myself totally in the glory of His majesty? Why would that not be the first thing I think of when I open my eyes?  How can I get alone with Him?

Turn off the cell phone.  Get up before the kids.  Schedule an appointment for the two of you... do whatever you have to do to get alone with Him, with no distractions.  Spend quality time with the most important Person in your life. If you do...you will never regret it for a minute.  If you don't ... you will regret it for an eternity.