Youth devotion

Focus, focus, foc….ooh look Shiny! Have you seen the movie Up? Squirrel! In case you’re not quite sure why I’m yelling at you about tiny, furry rodents who are obsessed with hiding nuts in trees--that’s something that the dog characters in Up are constantly getting distracted by! One minute they're sniffing the trail of their prey or “having a conversation” about who is the Alpha dog and all of sudden every dog freezes, perks up his ears, and darts his eyes around looking for the worst of distractions…a Squirrel. Side note: Did you notice that all the dogs on Up are male? How does that work on a deserted island for much longer than the regular lifespan of a dog? Anyway… But those dogs are not the only ones Squirrel! who get distracted. So do we. Do you know the story of Mary and Martha? It goes something like this: Mary and Martha are sisters. Jesus and the disciples went over to their house for dinner. Mary was fascinated with everything Jesus had to say and got so caught up in it that she didn’t pay any attention to cooking or clearing the table. Martha spent her time bustling around and got really huffy because Mary wasn’t helping. Check out Luke 10:38-42 for more details. You know, I know, everybody knows that there are too many activities, text messages, too much Facebook time, TV ads, and many, many things pulling at our time to be able to avoid distraction Squirrel! in our lives. How many different activities have you done today? School, family time, a sport, band, a club, homework, eating, Facebook… And how many people have you interacted with? One, ten, hundreds? The story in Luke says that “Martha was distracted by all the preparations Squirrel! that had to be made.” It’s not that the details of life are unimportant or that we should not give them any of our attention. It’s just that they are “extras.” They’re not what’s truly important. Jesus said, “only one thing is needed.” That one thing is a focus on God through Jesus Christ. That’s the only thing that is absolutely necessary! The bonus is that that one thing brings all the other details together and helps us choose what we really value Squirrel! in life.