In the early 1960's Walt Disney produced a movie called The Absent Minded Professor. The movie is about Professor Brainard (pronounced BRAY-nerd) who teaches at Midfield College. Professor Brainard invents a substance that he calls flubber. The professor is so excited and so involved over his discovery that he forgets to show up to his own wedding. Because of his "absent mindedness" his fiancée, Betsy Carlisle, is left alone at the altar. Throughout the remainder of the movie Professor Brainard encounters many unfortunate but funny disasters, and one that is not so funny as he almost loses the woman he loves.
Absent-mindedness occurs when a person has lapses of concentration. Some refer to this as "zoning out". This problem is most common in teenagers and senior citizens. Going back to the brilliant absent minded professor it is evident that even very intelligent people are prone to be absent minded. The story is told of the ancient philosopher Thales, who "walked at night with his eyes focused on the heavens, and as a result, fell down a well." My wife is a very smart, intelligent person. She finished college in three years with very good grades. Her problem sometimes is that she becomes so focused on one thing that she has no idea what is going on around her. There have been times when I have interrupted her to tell her something, she looks at me and answers me, but later when I mention the information I shared with her, she has no idea what I am talking about. Distraction, lack of attention and intense focus (hyperfocus) are reasons for absent-mindedness. I have been so lost in thought that I have driven miles past an exit that I should have taken. Very often the reason that we lose an item is that we were too focused on something else when we put it away. There are tragic stories of mothers and fathers who have been so focused on getting to work that they forgot to drop off their child at the baby sitter and left the child in a hot car all day. I think everyone has had moments of absent mindedness. This fast paced world is very demanding, placing before us many less important objects of focus.
God did not intend for us to be so distracted by the demands of the world that we miss the things in life that will truly bless us. In His Word we find the secret to peace and comfort. "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you." Isaiah 26:3. The goal of the evil one is to draw our focus away from God. When that happens our attention is captured by things that prevent us from focusing on what is most important. As we direct our focus daily on God He will guide our minds so that we can accomplish the work that is before us. We will be better at our jobs and we will find more pleasure in performing our tasks. I don't know if is because I am getting old or if I am just absent minded, but there have been times I have looked everywhere for my glasses only to find them on top of my head. A couple of times I searched for my car keys and discovered that I was holding them in my hand. Talk about absent mindedness!
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7
No comments:
Post a Comment