What distracts you from your priorities?
We can become professionals in doing everything except the necessary priority. Some of this behavior has to do with procrastination rooted in fear and anxiety. It can result from a casual attitude looking to coast off of past successes. Often, we distract ourselves to inaction because what the perception of lacking control.
2 Samuel 11 shifts the story of David’s life. Up until now, the author of 2 Samuel has shared the success of David. Like a dark cloud casting over an afternoon sky, we will encounter the tragic crumbling of David’s legacy. It starts with this verse:
“In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.” 2 Samuel 11:1
This observation from the author sets the stage for David’s moral failure and the ensuing chapters describe the family feud with Absalom. It indicates David’s distraction from God’s calling to him as a King.
Often, 2 Samuel 11:1 begins a conversation about how susceptible David and ultimately the readers of this passage can become to moral failures. You can notice a more significant leadership principle — the danger of distracting ourselves from what God has called us to do.
Consider these examples…
The athlete neglecting to train in the off-season to rest.
The doctoral student working on every other project except their thesis.
The musician adding more concerts to their schedule rather than writing new music.
None of these examples indicate an enormous distraction, but just enough to knock a person a few degrees off their priorities. Distractions do not always have the same catastrophic consequences as David, but they do keep us from God’s best in our lives. They focus us on the present rather than us entering the larger story and work of God in our lives.
I’ve talked to many people and even myself saying this, “Why didn’t I follow God’s lead on that earlier?” We can make God’s will for us intangibly beyond us, but what if it started with a concrete response to what God has called us to do…
Starting a budget for your finances.
Beginning to plan the next year in the summer with your team.
Praying for wisdom on reconciling with a person.
Starting the conversation that has waited for months.
What is distracting you from the priorities that God has set before you? Rather than thinking about the negative consequences, consider what God might do in your life if you responded right away.
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