James 1:13 English Standard Version (ESV) Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.

What distracts us? Initially it is those things we have found to be pleasing in our past lives. Those things have implanted a memory of pleasures in our minds. Even if we discovered that those pleasures led us to a place of repentance, the memory of the pleasure remains.

Those are the easiest distractions to recognize and we can avoid being drawn into sin. Then there are other distractions that are not so obvious because they do not necessarily lead to outright sin.

Advertisers understand human nature and they want to draw our attention to their product, no matter what that item might be. There is a sale to be made even if it only costs a few cents a day. That is not where danger lurks. The danger for us lurks in the amount of time spent pondering meaningless decisions.

We have witnessed the corrosion of familial relationships because our time is divided between making a living and the responsibilities of parenting. Families fall apart because of the amount of time dedicated to that relationship. It is not the lack of money that causes these failures, it is the lack of attention.

In the 50’s television became the babysitter. We sat in front of that light shining into our world rather than parents shining the light within them on us. This led to the sixties, a war, and division of concerns because parenting had been replaced with the agendas where others peddled their wares.

Every distraction is an opportunity to waste time that interferes with our relationship with family and with our God. In these times of instant entertainment it is only getting worse.