Man, I love getting attention! I think I’ve become pretty good at getting it as well. I just think of really stupid stuff to do and hey presto!
Seriously though, why is that mostly really dumb stuff gets the most attention? What is that about? Like you sit there and watch a film about a bunch of teens learning to cross the road really safely, but as soon as they start getting hit at 60 mph and bouncing of windscreens it becomes the funniest film of the decade!
I want to make a point that it’s not just dumb stuff that gets attention – there are some really smart things that get attention too. Not just any old person’s attention either – I’m talking G-O-D style attention!
Hands up – Who wants God’s attention all over their life?
I’m sure we all do. To be honest, who wouldn’t? If you want to really see God move in your world then He needs to be so involved in it that He can’t help but show up everywhere and in everything.
Did you know, there are a few things you can do that draw God’s attention directly into your life? That’s what we’re gonna look at now.
Your Worship
John 4:23-24
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
Immediately, those verses let us know that God is desperately searching for something so particular and distinct and unique.
When I was a teen I use to hang out down commercial road and my mum used to go to Oasis church nearby. I’m totally not knocking their style of worship but all I ever saw was what looked like a bunch of people sharing a heart attack! I just didn’t understand it. I thought, “If that’s worship, then I don’t wanna know!” I thought worship was about being weird and pretending to be electrocuted.
So when I joined Family Church I still didn’t get it – People waved flags, some guy did cartwheels, there were tambourines and everything! Nowadays its arms in the air, bouncing up and down, clapping off beat and the occasional “whoop, whoop!”
I’ve learnt over the years though, that is not what worship is. Worship is spiritual and is based on truth. And that, according to John, is what get’s God’s attention all over you. God is looking for that kind of worship. He can pick one person out of a million if they are the only one worshipping this way.
Don’t just sing songs, lift hands and clap in time. Sing from your spirit and reflect His glory – then sometimes that other stuff becomes a natural expression of what is happening inside you. Your soul will drag your hand in the air and your knees to the floor all by itself!
Your respect
Psalm 33:18
But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death, and keep them alive in famine.
Ever gone through a time when you really felt like your whole life has dried up – an empty existence, like even God has disappeared into another universe? Sometimes we all get that experience. But there are ways to survive – you need God’s attention!
His eyes are on those who fear Him – Those who show awesome respect and understand His Holiness. Fearing God isn’t being afraid of Him, it’s knowing that He is the greatest Authority and that what He says goes – not even you can persuade Him otherwise. Relationship with God isn’t about making deals so that you get do what you want and not feels so guilty about it. It’s about you understanding that life works best when it’s submitted to Him.
When you can do this, God’s attention is all over you – and He can keep you going in through the most difficult and dry experiences you’ll face.
Your life and your cry
Psalm 34:15
The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;
Whatever you face in life, do it in Christ. Righteousness get’s God’s attention in a huge way. Trouble is you don’t have any. Good news is, Jesus has loads. Even better news – He is willing to trade! So faith in Christ draws massive attention. At that point, so does your cry!
By the way, I can’t swim. So at a family holday in Spain I was a total genius for standing by the deep end of a pool! Obviously I fell in. I had to SCREAM for help! Thank God that my cousin dragged me out.
Blind Bartimaeus had to scream for God’s help. He was totally blind but when he heard Jesus was in town He screamed His name – all to get His attention. He did – and he got his sight as well!
Or how about this – I went to a footy game between Pompey and Man Utd years ago. As I lived in Pompey I could only get a ticket for the Pompey section of fans – trouble is I liked Man Utd. So when they scored against Pompey I cheered wildly and got some scary looks for doing so.
The woman with the issue of blood threw herself into a similar crowd. She got amongst a whole bunch of people that she did not belong to, she should not have been there – but she ignored reputation, class and popularity for the attention she desperately needed.
James 4:8
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you – clean your hands, purify your heart.
So what’s got your attention – what are you drawing near to? If it isn’t God, then you haven’t caught His attention either.
In 2 Chronicles 34:1-7 Josiah became King aged 8 years old! At 16 He chased God and began to throw out everything that took people’s attention away from God on to other things. So what do you have to chuck out of your life? What is distracting you from pouring your attention on God?
2 Chronicles 16:9a
For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.
God is looking for people to commit to him fully within their heart. If you want God’s attention then tonight is your night to commit your life to Him. Go on, get His attention, it will revolutionise your entire life!
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