When Distractions Are Cause for Concern

We live in a society where we are bombarded by constant distractions: television, radio, people, internet, social media, etc. Although distractions are inevitable, they can be loaded if not handled properly.

You need to mindful and (alarmed) if distractions are:

Causing you to neglect or ignore your duties as a wife, mother, and homemaker. The internet, especially FB, has become a stumbling block for many women. Simple chores such as, washing dishes or making lunch are not performed in a timely fashion because of a wasted hour browsing Facebook.  

If you work from home and must use the internet, I understand the necessity. However, be mindful that even working from home can become a distraction that separates you from your most important position as wife, mother, and homemaker. It's difficult to juggle the many responsibilities handed to us as women, but monitoring and prioritizing our time is crucial for a peaceful home and life.

Burning your conscience. In other words, you no longer view something as sinful that God calls immoral or deficient. 

Causing your heart to stray from God and His precepts. If we are not spending time with God, something is wrong. I understand there are seasons in a woman's life where she may not be able to spend time with the Lord in the morning for an hour or two, but finding time to feed our souls in God's presence is important. We cannot successfully perform life when we're void of The Living Water.

• Play uplifting, worshipful Christian music.
• Pray while cleaning, washing dishes, etc.
• Having someone read to you is an indulgence too sweet to overlook. Audiotapes are wonderful luxuries for busy women. 

Causing you to covet the sugar on the other side of the fence. The internet, including FB, can be a playground for sin. Facebook is simply people putting their best face forward. And, many women have been guilty of coveting the sugar on the other side of the fence. If it's not yours, it wasn't meant to be yours. Get out of there. Real life is messy, so don't believe all the hype. 

Don't confuse a distraction for inspiration. Inspiration makes you feel alive and worthy, while a distraction can cause confusion and unworthiness.

Excellent weekend reading:

When You Sort of Feel Like Your Drowning

Do Unto Husbands

Let your mind meditate on those things which are lovely, noble, and pure (Phil 4:6-8). Feed your soul with all things beautiful:

Images

Have a blessed weekend.

Are You Listening?: Guest Post by a Proverbs 31 Wife

My husband, Jason, talks to himself. All the time. He says it's how he processes his thoughts, something to do with being ADD and all that stuff. So after about a year of being married and hearing him talking to himself and not me, I began tuning him out. He would walk into the room and start talking to me and my brain just "turned his voice off." That would result in a very frustrated hubby yelling "Are you Listening to Me?"

We both had to make changes to fix this communication problem. He tries to say my name and get my attention first, and then start talking. Many times though, he still forgets. So it falls on me. I had to make some changes myself. It starts with listening. I don't mean listening to every word that comes mumbled out of his mouth, but listening to his body language. I had to learn to listen when he walks into the room. Yes, he's talking, but what is he doing? I had to learn to listen with more than my ears, I had to learn to listen with my heart.

Because we are human, we still have this problem, but we also have the tools to fix it. Now it's up to us. But I had to think about this listening problem. It goes beyond Jason and I, it goes beyond marriage. Listening is something that is so rare these days. We have so much other noise, in our lives, so much chaos in our heads with those to-do lists that are a mile long; and we just forget to listen.

We forget to listen to that sad little face, because mommy forgot to do something she promised. We forget to listen to the down cast brother or sister who's heart is breaking. We forget to listen to our neighbor who needs help. We forget to listen to the person in front of us at the check-out line. We just forget to listen. Instead, we see a whiny child, a complaining person, an annoying neighbor, and a rude woman who cut us in line.

Every heart has a story to tell. Are we listening with our hearts to their story; or are we just tuning it all out, in our rush to get somewhere in this rat-race called life?

I know I am so guilty of that. So guilty of just turning away because "I'm in a hurry," "I'm just to busy," "I don't have time." You name it, I have probably used it. But the Lord has been working on me, (thank goodness!) and my heart is softening, and learning to listen. Learning to hear the heart's cry of those around me.

What happens when you hear their heart's cry? You slow down, you care, you cry, smile, hug, and sometimes you just pray. My prayer is that we (myself included) would learn to listen with our hearts. That we would listen with our hearts and see others as Jesus sees them.

Kendra is the wife to a wonderful young man named Jason. A little over a year ago she began blogging at A Proverbs 31 Wife, where her mission is to inspire and encourage all aspiring homemakers.

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