What on earth get’s your attention? You know, what fly in the ointment or dangling participle or rabbit trail pulls you from your intended direction?
We have a 17 year old cat. She’s my daughters cat from way back when, and we’ve ended up with her occupying the living room with us. She wants to be a lap kitty, and enjoys sitting in your lap soaking up the attention.
But when she sleeps nothing seems to disturb her. She snores. She’s deep undercover, unseen, and will stay that way for a decade of hours.
This morning I got an interesting Instagram posting that I chose to turn my sound up and listen. A young lady was kneeling in the snow surrounded by wolves, or wolf-hybrid dogs, and she began to howl like a wolf. The dogs, asleep in the snow, slowly woke up and all three began to howl with her.
- My cat? Ignored the human voice, she did. But when those wolf-dogs started joining in, well, she swung her head around, ears perked, and I know here Fight or Flight instinct was immediately piqued.
No other noise would affect her, but her danger level was alerted in the midst of a snore!
It’s like you and I plugging away with life, and suddenly a bauble passes before us and before you know it, the schedule is shot, and the day is nigh near gone!
What get’s your attention?
Test It For Yourself
I tested it for myself by jumping over to my Twitter feed and scrolled the mass of communications dangling in front of me like low hanging fruit. Let’s see…
- Someone bragging about an accomplishment
- Someone else bragging about their friendship with so-and-so
- Another several people still talking about that silly awards program from yesterday. Or was it yesteryear?
- Prayer request for their 2-year old diagnosed with a brain tumor.
- There’s some post about someone’s new project, hoping you will support them by spending some of your money.
- Then all the quotes and sayings that help define someone and their platform.
- Obnoxious advertisements.
Now. Which of these will get your attention?
Of course, it all depends on you and who you choose to follow, and how loud they are in the social world. Occasionally, someone posts something that gets my attention. Why? It probably fit the thinking processes of my mind, or it seemed to be an interesting diversion.
With my hearing fading faster than a riptide, I would much rather read than listen, or watch. It has something to do with the speed of my eyes and the slowness of my ears and attention span.
I grow weary of the incessant noise and visual aids that are in our social feeds. Advertisements. Audios. Videos. My mind works so much faster than uhm’s and aha’s… Give me the MEAT! Share on XIf I determine that your story is interesting enough for me to follow, then I’ll dig it out on my own from a multitude of insights instead of being spooned by your production mode!
How Do You Handle It?
First, you need to identify what the list represents – distractions. Good, bad, or ugly, the fact that you have a feed of such varied input shows you are probably looking for distractions to your purpose and goal of life!
Distractions must be controlled. Focus must be attainted. A goal must be in mind when you start your day. Your purpose restricts what you allow to tempt you down one path or another. Control those distractions!
Why are we tempted to these distractions?
One thing I note about myself, it’s a bad case of FOMO – Fear of Missing Out! Being out of the know is scary, but at the same time I’m reassured when life happens and I can honestly say, “Sorry. Uninformed. Didn’t know!”
Especially to that latest news story, or social faux pax!
There is a Precedent
The Apostle Paul gives us two thoughts about this, and they are scripture references we use all the time for other purposes:
- “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” 2 Corinthians 10:5 (KJV)
- “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14 (KJV)
He knew the distractions of life were huge, especially in that ancient time of slow news! Anxious waiting for the ships to dock bringing the latest gossip and dispatches.
So, refusing to be drawn into the social needs of the day, he narrowed his focus by stating his purpose and goals with words of determination.
“….bring every thought into captivity…” simply means that what flies through the mind must be corralled and put away into a dungeon! Lock the door. Throw away the key! Equally, forgetting the past, reach through the present and into the future, determine the path in front, and do not leave it for any distraction!
There’s power in this thought… If you are easily distracted, then choose a path that minimizes the destruction of wandering minds. You have the power to control what gets your attention! Do it!