Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment'” (Matthew 22:36-38).
With all your heart, soul, mind: echo echo echo…
I can’t stop thinking about it
I have not been loving God with all of my heart, all of my soul, all of my mind: I have been playing the field and perhaps, you have too, dear reader?
Yesterday, my obsession with an Apple Watch reached a fevered pitch. I actually spoke the words, I can’t stop thinking about it. My son said, well thats not right… and I knew, it really wasn’t right. Somehow I had become possessed with the idea and subsequent persistent and pestilent thoughts that I must have this thing in my life. I had many reasons for wanting the watch, having the watch, running out to the stores as soon as possible to find one that would take over my life! While this sounds dramatic, I have an inkling that there is a significant measure of truth in this statement, of a life takeover, perhaps even, an hostile takeover?
Wooing Watch
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| Take me home with you |
The watch would tell me the time, count my steps, track my activities; be my most intimate and honest companion: with me all day, even when I slept.
The watch promised to be honest with me, be my accountability partner and remind me to take care of myself, to breathe when somehow, I was holding my breath… how I have survived thus far is clearly a mystery?
The watch would monitor me and give me the feedback I need to live a cleaner life, based on my fitness goals and its artificially engineered intuitive guidance geared specifically to me.
The watch would be the ultimate collaborator, my watch. While I considered shelling out the cash for this device, there was one special pink watch waiting for me to take it home. Pick me, it called out to me, I want to be yours Linda…
The watch was wooing me, enticing me, making me promises… how could I possibly resist?
Strangeness of my obsession
In my frenzied desire, I considered the strangeness of my obsession. I considered my sons words of it “not being right”, and I took a quick moment to do something I knew would change everything for me. I prayed: God, do you want me to have that watch?
Impact on my life
I carried on with my day and planned on getting the watch after my last coaching session. I viewed a video about the watch and and… and nothing dear reader. I felt nothing! The watch seemed a odd thing to me. Why would I want one, was the question. More importantly, what impact would having one have on my life? It was the last question that had me knowing Gods answer to my question: do you want me to have that watch?
Evil marketer
God knows me dear reader. He knows my propensity to get distracted, off track, self-absorbed, obsessive, single-minded (ok that is enough self-exposure of character flaws for this cat for one day). He also knows the hidden agenda behind the watch, the unspoken, insidious threat from the greatest evil minded genius marketer in the world; this agenda is heart, mind, and soul control. This marketer suggests ways of staying focused, on track, meaningfully and healthfully self-absorbed and steadfastly connected to goal achievement: given the right information, we can be in mindful control of all of our vital statistics. With a watch that knows everything about you, you can rely on it, and on yourself, pushing any need for God right out of the option section of your life. The evil marketer is not Apple: this being uses people and their de-vices in his diabolical schemes. He has been around for a very, very long time.
Be still
I had to ask myself what I wanted the watch for dear reader. The answer was health and fitness accountability and I liked this idea very much. But that is not all that the watch does. The watch is a hyper version of constant connectivity and availability. It makes the wearer perpetually aware, of pretty much everything all of the time. It is a non-stop source of information and stimulation and the overload leaves very little time and energy to “Be still, and know that I am god” (Psalm 46:10). When Siri and Google are our consultants and we start believing we are the masters of our own breathing, we are in big trouble dear reader.
Dear one, I was flirting with being the one in charge of my life. I was being wooed by a wayward world view. I was weakened at the knees by a handsome shiny soul mate champion, devoted strictly to me and my life. I wanted a partner, there for me twenty-four seven and I was determined to have him (my Siri voice is always male). I was playing the field and almost gave myself away, forsaking my God for a thing. Was I endanger? Not really, because God knows me, and I know him. It was a temporary loss of sanity and I was retrieved from the edge! My heart, my soul, my mind, they belong to him. He is my first love and I am his.
He loves you this much too, dear reader. He wants you to know him, love him, in a heartfelt, mindful, soulful way that leaves no room for the fake and false gods that would have you travelling 10 000 steps a day away from him. He is your heartbeat. He gives you breath. He tracks your every move and he longs to be your accountability partner.
There is something that is distracting you from him to your peril, what is it dear one? Pray: he will answer you. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind: this is the greatest command.
