Have we forgotten the intimate? The eternal conversation between Creator and creation?

The question above comes from one of my favorite videos, and has been haunting me these days.

We Christians are tasked with a simple mission: to seek His Kingdom first.

A task that requires me to reverse-engineer all the common wisdom of a zero-sum, get-what-you-give, you-only-live-once mentality that I have been brainwashed with. A calling that flips everything on its head. But a calling has no use if I’m not listening.

I have not been listening because I have let in everything, for fear of missing out. It is characteristic of my generation, and I find it even more alarming, since I am one of its more private fellows.

When I am bombarded with noise, I lose my focus. I listen to the wrong messages. I confuse my priorities. I lose my place.

My place is at the foot of the cross. My place is amidst those who are hurting and lost.

There are thousands of articles and lists and videos that tell you to jump ship from the behemoth that is social media. To stop staring at your phone and look beyond its pixels. To get outside of our selfies.  And no one listens to them – because they’re all just part of the noise.

In all honesty, the things I spend my time and attention on are not bad. They are just excessive. They are not necessary.

So, I am turning down the noise this Lenten season – not as an escape, but as an intentional course of action to truly engage with my world and with my God. To find clarity and purpose and abundance in the silence.

Speak, Lord. I am trying oh-so-hard to listen.