Have you ever been on the Internet and noticed, no ads? I know, I know, no such thing…EVER! I am constantly being bombarded with ads, from this to that and for everything under the sun. I have yet to see any ad that welcomes me and assures me of some rest and respite from the pressures of life. Go here and do this, go there and do that, see this and that, come and spend, spend, SPEND!
It seems, whenever I decide I have had enough of all this, I go back to my past─when I was young, when the only thing that mattered was, playing. Back then the TV stations had some ads but few in number, then again, the stations came on a 3:00 p.m. and went off at 10:00 p.m. Also there were no color TVs, they were all in black and white and the screen was a 13-inch diagonal and the cabinet was a hulking huge piece of furniture. Of course, the radio had been around for quite a while and the ads were everywhere and every home had at least one radio.
I also remember, the days were filled to the brim with all sorts of different scenarios of what to play, the girls had dollies and tea parties and the boys had their guns. Despite these toys, we had a better time using our imaginations and playing with an empty box that someone’s refrigerator came in. Even though the airwaves were full of advertisements, we could not have cared less. Then again, we were children.
The point I am working on here is this: The distractions that we must all face every moment of every day.
The friend who helped me return to my Lord and Savior once told me that Satan and his ilk would rattle a window blind, if they though it would move our attention from the Lord. How insightful of him to know this. Truth, be told, right?
Those of us, who are true believers of Jesus Christ, already know how deceitful Satan and his ilk really are. Let there be no mistake here, he is truly the “silver-tongued devil” and his mark is everywhere and in almost everything. How better to divert our attention from Jesus Christ, than by whispering in our ears, “Money, money, MONEY!”
Or maybe it would be, “See that pretty sparkly under the glass? You should have that, and if you don’t have it already─then why not? Maybe hubby doesn’t love you enough to give that to you!” And then we start our list of other things that have not arrived for our pleasure. Then the next morning arrives with anger, and spitefulness in your heart. As the days move on, these feelings exacerbate like an infected boil.
So here you sit, crying your eyes out! Hubby ran off with the secretary, the dog got picked up and euthanized for biting the mailman, and the cat died of distemper. And you’re wondering to yourself, what happened? In the meantime, Satan and his ilk are sitting back and laughing their collective butts off at you and your new situation! How cozy and warm do you feel now? And there on the end table sits your Bible, all covered in dust, hardly ever opened. Can you see all those “distractions” now?
Matthew 6.19-21: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
This is a wonderful passage to consider. If your eyes had been looking for the things of the Lord, you would never have seen the “sparkly” to begin with, because something like that wouldn’t matter. Had your heart been looking to the Lord, for HIS direction, the words, “money, money, money” would never have been heard. If they had been heard, they would not have mattered to you in the least. Everything falls apart in life the moment you take your eyes and ears off the Lord.
Matthew 11.28-30: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Right there in the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
Everything one would need to know, who Jesus Christ is. Wrapped up in black and white for all to see and read. No advertisements, no loud music, just the same, straight-forward Truth, that we all know, we need. That blessed state of being quiet, smelling the sweet scent of silence, feeling the warmth and Love of HIS arms around us.
And the world “rages on!”
Don’t you ever have the feeling like, “Someone stop this train. I want off !” (Reread the short paragraph above.)
Jeremiah 31.3: “The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”
When was the last time anyone came along and said that to you, with an everlasting love? Are you starting to see the picture here? The things of this world have NO HOLD on you, unless you allow them to! I sometimes have this video in my head: My Dad has me by the ankles, I’m upside-down and he’s smacking me like there is no tomorrow! “Dad! What are you doing?” I begin to scream! “Shutup! I’m busy trying to knock the ‘stupid’ out of you!” is his reply. And I can see the love in his eyes. I now see the Lord doing the same to me every day.
It has never been the Lord that wants to harm us! The Lord wants to shower us with love! We are the ones, so busy listening to the loud and obnoxious music, rather than finding the peace and love in our Lord and Savior’s arms! We are the ones that ask for all these advertisements, all the noise, all the distractions, and Satan and his ilk are always ready, willing and able to provide for that all you ask!
And then people have the audacity to blame the Lord for all that goes wrong in our lives and this world. And as they do so, they are all too willing to find WHOM is at fault, whom can they blame!
Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, didn’t get on the cross at Calvary all by Himself. You and I helped to put HIM there…and NEVER once did HE deserve that! Before you seek someone to blame, for your situation, I would suggest you begin with the mirror and then end with the Bible!