Have you ever gone to the grocery store, only to forget what it was you came for? How about this one; you get out into your car and remember you forgot something (Oxymoron). So you end up going back into the house - there you stand with that deer in the headlights look on your face - unable to remember what it was you were coming to retrieve.
The mind is a complex and funny thing. As we get older, we begin to have brain cells die off slowly, thereby causing some of our memory loss. Another recent study in Japan, found that 1out of every10 people between the ages of 20-35 interviewed suffered from significant memory loss.1This was linked to their dependence on computers and electronic devices that discouraged the use of the human brain and recalling memory.
It is the same for all of us who are being bombarded with technology - we are getting lazy to do any real searching for answers. Unfortunately, many of the alleged facts available online are not authenticated or remotely true. And this is especially true with respect to false religions. So what happens? We can get discouraged from even studying, and end up believing some of these things and inevitably stray from the faith (1Tim. 4:1).
Q: What does this mean to us as Christians?
A: It means we must guard ourselves against those things causing us to be distracted.
The enemy will forever distract us; it is his goal to get our eyes off of God, and His Word. He will entice us to look to the left or to the right - anywhere but on God.
Q: Why does Satan attempt to distract us?
A: So we forget why we are here, and where we are going.
We don't need to know everything there is about God to know His desire for us. We are to live our lives in a selfless way, sharing the message of the Gospel with others. We are to be eagerly expecting the return of Christ and living each day as it were our last (Heb. 9:28).
- Satan knows if he can keep us from walking with the Lord, then we will be less apt to be a threat to his plan of deceiving people into hell.
- Satan knows if he can get us to take our eyes off of Christ, we will stumble and be ineffective Christian witnesses.
- Satan knows if he can get us to look at our past we will be paralyzed in guilt - again useless in Kingdom building ministry.
- Satan knows if he can get us to feel as though we have accomplished everything we need to by simply accepting Christ as our Savior, we will be content in our Christian walk - apathetic to those lost.
The Apostle Paul spoke of this very thing as recorded in the Book of Philippians.
Paul is identifying his need to forget the past. This isn't speaking of wiping out his memory of his past - it was a conscious decision by him to not allow it to consume his attention or hinder his progress for sharing his faith with others. There was no way Paul was going to allow any current achievement to sucker him into thinking he had somehow reached the finish line or experienced everything Christ had called him to do.
It is the same with us today as Christian men and women. We must, like Paul, press forward to those things ahead. We must ask ourself these questions.
Q: Am I content with accepting Christ as my Savior?
Q: Am I willing to be used to help others to be saved?
Q: Do I have a burden for the lost?
Hey Christian, I want to encourage you to guard yourself against forgetting why we are here. It is to glorify God and to share the message of the Cross - Jesus Christ died for our sins and was resurrected on the third day (1Cor 15:3-4). If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom. 10:9-10).
STUDY QUESTION: What was Paul's philosophy about living once he had accepted Jesus as Lord according to the Scriptures in this devotional?
PERSONAL INVENTORY: Are you willing to say as Paul did, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain?"
APPLICATION: Make it a point to make a bullet list of priorities to do daily. These will keep you focused. This should include praying to God for His leading. Don't be legalistic - be loving and Spirit led.
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