Getting Distracted from Your Purpose
Text: 2 Samuel 11:1-27
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” —1 Peter 5:8
Yogi Berra wasn’t just known for his formidable bat, but also for his plethora of quotable “Yogi-isms.” He also loved to chatter when trying to get an edge over the opponent. In His book “Nehemiah: Learning to Lead,” J.M. Boice wrote about the time Berra tried to distract Hank Aaron as the power hitter came to the plate in a World Series game between the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Braves.
Berra said, “Henry, you’re holding the bat wrong. You’re supposed to hold it so you can read the trademark.” Aaron didn’t say anything, but when the next pitch came, he hit it into the left-field bleachers. After rounding the bases and tagging home plate, Aaron looked at Yogi Berra and said, “I didn’t come up here to read.”
If only King David had remained as focused on his purpose as Aaron was that day at the ballpark, he would’ve spared himself and his kingdom a great deal of pain. The text in 2 Samuel 11 says: “In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.”
David was idle while the other kings were “out to battle.” It’s been said that idle time is the devil’s playground. That seemed to be the case with David as he got distracted by his view of Bathsheba on the rooftop of his palace. That distraction set off an entire course of one wrong decision after another—the kind of stuff you’d think was scripted for a Netflix drama series. Lust, secret sins, manipulation, betrayal, murder. It’s all in there.
David ended up committing adultery with Bathsheba, and then had her husband killed to try and cover it up. The consequences were very severe as calamity came upon David’s own household. What started out as just a little distraction led to big sins with deadly consequences and ripple effects throughout his kingdom. The “man after God’s own heart” wasn’t immune to having his heart drift, and the chain reaction of sins that followed.
We are never more vulnerable to the enemy than when we are experiencing purpose-distraction or vision-drift. That’s why Peter gave this admonition to early followers of Jesus: “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The Greek word translated “watchful” means to be “cautious,” “active,” or “roused from sleep.” It gives the connotation of taking heed lest through remission and indolence some destructive calamity suddenly overtakes one.
If David’s attention had been where God wanted it, he would never have put it where God didn’t want it. Think about that as you seek to abide in Christ this week.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, I desire a heart that is pleasing to you and a life that worships you in Spirit and Truth. It’s so easy to get distracted by things that have nothing to do with my calling and purpose, but you are greater. Holy Spirit, give me a sober mind to be watchful as the enemy prowls all around seeking one to devour. Help me stay awake in the hour of temptation. Empower me to focus on my purpose above every distraction and help me to have my eyes fixed on my heavenly calling. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion:
- When have you been locked in on your life’s purpose with a tenacious focus? When have you experienced vision-drift or purpose-distraction?
- In what times or seasons do you find yourself most vulnerable to distractions and temptations?
- David was a man after God’s own heart but still ended up an adulterer and murderer. What are the lessons we can learn from this chapter of his life?
- Has distraction led to sins that you need to confess right now?
- In what areas of your relationship with Christ have you not been so “watchful”? How can you become more sober-minded this week?