Remove Distractions and Pay Attention

He positioned his wheelchair in front of all the other residents seated in the community room of the assisted living facility that late June morning. As my friends and I sang patriotic songs, hymns, and other uplifting pieces, I noticed this gentleman watching us intently. After a few songs, he turned his wheelchair sideways so that he was no longer facing us but the window. He was listening to our music without watching us, gazing out the window. When we had finished the set, he turned back and looked at us warmly with deep gratitude reflected in his eyes. It seemed that we had allowed him to transport himself to another time and place, and maybe to forget his wheelchair for a little while. 

What struck me was how he turned his wheelchair so that he wasn’t facing us. He took a deliberate step to focus his attention on the music and not be distracted by watching us sing. 

So often when we’re listening to someone, we let ourselves get distracted. In our conversations, we may have our minds on our own happenings. In church, we may let our mind wander to our plans for the day instead of concentrating on the message being presented to us. In our personal prayer time, it’s easy to get distracted by our phone or thoughts of our work that still needs to be done.

If we listen to others with sincere interest, we’ll show that what they have to say is important to us. Similarly, if we take a moment to remove the distractions in our prayer time, we’ll be more receptive to what our Lord may be trying to tell us. We never know who or what He’ll use to reach us. We’ll hear Him only if we pay attention. 

Remove distractions, and pay attention.

Pay attention to the thoughts and feelings that come to you as you read His word, or admire His creation, or celebrate with people you love. 

Pay attention to your gut feelings that prompt you to speak or act – or, when you get the feeling to be silent or not act.

Go to a place where distractions are minimal. The ‘inner room’ (Matthew 6:6) can be an actual place or simply an interior frame of mind.

The gentleman in the wheelchair was clearly moved by our music. May we, also, be moved by what we see, hear, and read. May it change us into more loving, compassionate, and generous people. May we not rush through our day, but take deliberate steps to listen to what our Lord has to say to us and then act on what we hear.

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” – Luke 11:28

“Speak to me, Lord, and mold my heart. I’m listening.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

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P.S.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...

Also, if you’re able to help the people of Maui, here are a few organizations that are accepting donations:

The Hawaii Community Foundation 

The American Red Cross

The Maui Food Bank

A True Story

 

NOTE: This reflection was originally written May 16, 2022, about something that had happened to me the previous week. I am currently out of town and am posting it again in case you missed it the first time. I hope it reassures you of God's compassionate love for you!

 

 

 Sometimes God uses everyday objects to get our attention.  This was one of those times:

For weeks the dark clouds had followed me. You may know the feeling: You have much that you feel grateful for and you also feel yourself being dragged down, emotionally and spiritually. During this time, I seemed to spend a lot of energy trying to pick myself up. I repeatedly asked God to pull me out of this long-lasting slump, and then figured He wanted me to learn something about faith and perseverance. So, I kept praying, hoping He heard me.

Last Monday I was out for my usual walk around the neighborhood with thoughts and prayers swirling in my head. I thanked God for each member of our wonderful family and asked Him to continue to bless them. Then, as I crossed the street, I spotted a lone puzzle piece on the pavement – a single, plain white puzzle piece. “That’s odd,” I thought. “How did that get here? That’s so weird.” I didn’t pick it up because I thought maybe it had fallen out of its box, as strange as that seemed. I looked down at it and said to myself, “Someone’s looking for this missing piece.” Then Shel Silverstein’s book The Missing Piece came to mind and those words, the missing piece, looking for my missing piece, got stuck in my head like an earworm.

That night I woke up in the middle of the night. I eventually made myself stop tossing and turning. Then, in my mind, I handed over to God all the debris in there that was making me restless and contributing to those dark clouds. After a while my mind cleared, my body relaxed, and I slept soundly the rest of the night.

In the morning I tore off the page of my daily calendar, and this is what I saw:

 

“Thank You, Lord. Thank You for reassuring us that You’re with us, You hear us, and You love us. Thank You.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! Feel free to share it with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the

Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...

Also, if you’re able to help the people of Maui, here are a few organizations that are accepting donations:

The Hawaii Community Foundation 

The American Red Cross

The Maui Food Bank

Free as a Goldfinch

Purple thistles, various yellow wildflowers, and brown burrs flanked the trail my husband and I hiked last Saturday. As we walked and admired the late summer colors, a patch of black, yellow, and white caught my eye. I stopped to look more closely and realized it was a goldfinch! She didn’t move except for her head: She was stuck on a branch! 

I slowly stepped toward her and then hesitated. Should I touch her? I looked closer and saw that both feet and one wing were stuck on the burrs. I had to try to help her. Talking to her in a soothing voice, I carefully held her wing between my thumb and forefinger and gently pulled the burr away from it…and it came free! She didn’t move – she was probably terrified! Her legs were so tiny; I held first her left foot and then the right while gently pulling burrs off of them, all the while talking to her. 

I cradled her silky-soft body in my cupped hands for just a few seconds before she realized she was free. In a flash she flapped her wings and flew off erratically, anxious to get away. I watched her with an indescribable feeling of joy as she flew faster and higher, way up above us, eager to get back to her family and friends. I imagined she had quite a story to tell!

Sometimes we, too, get stuck, though not physically. We get stuck in our selfish or sinful ways. We have weaknesses we fall prey to. Regret and remorse may stick in our minds and hearts and keep us spiritually paralyzed, kind of like the goldfinch was stuck and couldn’t fly. 

That little bird needed someone to free her from the burrs. Christ is the Someone Who has the power to free us from our sins and burdens of guilt.

Christ’s love and mercy are stronger than the voice of shame that Satan whispers in your ear. Go to Christ and pour out your heart to Him. Admit that you are stuck in ways that aren't His loving ways. Ask Him for His mercy and forgiveness. Acknowledge that you need His power to set you free from these sins. Let His power and grace make you “a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Let Him give you the courage to fly away from the traps you keep getting stuck in. The Sacrament of Reconciliation was given to us exactly for this purpose.

Remember: You are loved, you are forgiven, and you are free to live again in the joy of His loving embrace. 

“For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting.” - Psalm 100:5

 

“Lord, I need You to set me free!”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...

P.P.S. If you’re able to help the people of Maui, here are a few organizations that are accepting donations:

The Hawaii Community Foundation 

The American Red Cross

The Maui Food Bank

"Stop and Listen"

When our children are frightened, they run to us for help. We hold them tight and reassure them that we’ll stay with them and keep them safe.

When we are worried, stressed, or otherwise burdened, do we turn to God our Father for help? Recall what the psalmist writes: 

“I cry aloud to God, cry aloud to God that He may hear me.” – Psalm 77:1

Our God is not some remote figure hovering up in the cosmos. He is the living God Who made you. He loves you. He lives in you. When you speak to Him, He hears you. When you ask Him for help, He gives you His power. When you turn to Him in your need, He gives you the grace to face your challenges.

Imagine our Lord speaking to you:

“You ask Me for help but don’t stop what you’re doing to let Me help you.

Stop and listen.

Stop. 

It takes time. My peace takes time.

Wisdom takes time.

Stop what you’re doing and turn your thoughts to Me and what I want you to do.

I will help you. I already promised that.

How I help you can only be learned from you if you stop for a while and let Me answer your questions.

I love you. You are my precious creation. I want you to depend on Me. I will lead you to the place of peace you’re seeking. I am with you every step of the way.

Stop and listen, and follow Me.”

No matter how big or small the issue is that you’re facing, our Lord is always with you to guide and strengthen you. How could remembering this make a difference?

When you’re angry with someone, instead of reacting with your usual harsh words or actions, stop and take a step back. Ask Christ to help you find the source of your anger and a healthy outlet for it. Pay attention to what thoughts come to mind. He may be leading you in a direction you hadn’t considered before. 

When you’re worried about your kids, stop and ask our Lord to watch over them and guide them in the choices they make. Pay attention to any ideas you get to say or do something that might benefit them.

When you feel overwhelmed, stop and ask our Lord to help you ‘keep your head above water.’ Maybe He’ll show you ways to handle your challenges a little at a time. Maybe He’ll lead you to a source of relief you hadn’t thought of before.

When you turn to our Lord in your distress, you may find yourself later declaring, as countless others have done for ages, “By the grace of God I got through that. I could never have done it without Him.”

“God Himself is my help.” – Psalm 54:4

“You have to help me, Lord. I can’t do this on my own.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

P.S.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...

P.P.S. If you’re able to help the people of Maui, here are a few organizations that are accepting donations:

The Hawaii Community Foundation 

The American Red Cross

The Maui Food Bank