Pay Attention

Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes. – Matthew 6:34

What are you paying attention to?

Perhaps you’re glued to the news to follow the spread of the Coronavirus.

Maybe you’re monitoring the stock market’s wild ride and your 401K balance.

Or you may regularly be checking in with people you’re concerned about.

In a crisis like the one we’re in it’s natural for our attention to be drawn to the things outside of us.

But take a moment and pay attention to what’s happening inside of you. Right now. What are you thinking? What are you feeling? What’s happening in your interior world? Are you feeling lonely? Afraid? Frustrated? Sad? Anxious? You’re not alone. Lots of us are feeling those things. They are all a natural response to a crisis.

Often our natural response to those feelings is to repress them or numb them with food, alcohol, shopping or scrolling through social media. But this is a great time to pay attention to what we’re feeling and simply sit with them, to welcome them as friends who have something to teach us. Listen to them deeply instead of chasing them away and you’ll hear them call you more deeply into the very thing your soul really longs for: God.

I urge you to set aside some time everyday to check in with yourself. Get in touch with your thoughts, feelings and longing. Don’t judge yourself for what you discover. Journal what you find. Talk about it with friend or prayer partner. Pray about it.

Need some help? Looking for resources? Check out this and this.

The world around us is changing. Trust that the Spirit is at work in you, changing you too.

Jeff Marian serves as lead pastor at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Burnsville, MN