Recently a friend asked me how she could pray for me. My response was, “Pray that I will stay attentive to the Lord. Pray that I would listen to Him, not the world around me.”

The world tells me success is found in making money and achieving status in the eyes of others.

God tells me success is obeying Him and living to please an audience of One.

The world tells me it’s all about me — my comfort and my desires.

God tells me it’s not about me; it’s about Him.

The world tells me outer beauty is what counts.

God tells me inner beauty is most important.

The world tells me the Bible is irrelevant today. The times and culture have changed, and God’s Word doesn’t apply to our world today.

God tells me His Word is everlasting and never changes. His principles still apply today.

The world tells me if there is a God and if He loves me, He wouldn’t allow difficult things to happen in my life.

God tells me He loves me even when hard times come. He uses those hard things for good, even though I may not be able to understand how until I see Him face to face.

The world tells me I can do things on my own strength. I don’t need God’s help.

God tells me I’m not able to do it on my own. I have to draw from His strength, not mine.

It’s easy to listen to the world and forget God’s truth at times.

What hinders us from listening to God and being attentive to Him?

  • No times of silence

We like constant noise around us. We are often uncomfortable with silence, but if we don’t shut out the noise around us, how can we be attentive to His promptings  through the Holy Spirit?

  • No time alone with Him

If we don’t stop to spend time alone with Him consistently, we don’t give Him the opportunity to direct us through His Word and prayer.

  • No sense of need for Him

When we’re confident in our own abilities, and life is going smoothly, it’s easy to lose that desperate dependence on Him. But even when life is going great, we still need Him. We still need to seek His direction and strength and protection.

David’s prayer in Psalm 25:4-5 expresses my heart’s desire:

“Make me know Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; for You, I wait all the day.”

I’d love to hear from you!  What helps you be attentive to God and enables you to tune out the world?

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