Tuning Out and Tuning In

Yesterday a neighbor reminded me of an important lesson: to hear the voice of God we have to get very quiet and very alone.

It has not been that way for me lately. I am an information junkie. With my lap top computer connected wirelessly to the internet I can receive and send information all day any day. It is convenient.

Perhaps that convenience is part of my current problem. You see, there is a lot going on right now and I should be really focused on discerning how to accomplish the things ahead. Most days I find myself overwhelmed. So, when overwhelmed I escape. And with my computer and the world wide web at my finger tips I can lose myself in a game, book, videos, or countless other distractions right there. After these distractions I rarely find myself fulfilled. Rather, I am more often disappointed that I am even further behind.

Here is the place for discipline. Francis Bacon said

If money be not thy servant,
it will be thy master

For me, my computer, TV or just mindless conversation can take over and monopolize my time. Even if I know there is something pressing I ought to do and really desire to do it, I often slip into time-wasting habits. Discipline -- teaching my self to do the right thing -- is so very important. When I get ready to go to a time-waster is when I am going to go to something that helps me tune in to that voice these distractions often tune out. Some things that help me tune in are

• taking a stroll
• writing notes
• prayer and meditation
• exercise
• power nap

I'm not giving up my computer. No, it is the primary tool for me to get work done! But when I am drawn to use it for distractions rather than production it becomes my "master". So, I am tuning out the distractions of instant information and entertainment and tuning in to those practices that get me closer to the answers I need in this time of transition.