The Value of Attention

Naval Ravicant said that "the real currency of life is attention." In the middle of so many waving flags, one thing that can command our undivided focus, even for a short time, is powerful. Road signs can be like that. In the middle of miles and miles of blank asphalt there is one distinct shape announcing that there is something ahead that requires a decision. Things that make us sit up and pay attention are increasingly rare, and almost always important.

In Joshua 3 God gives careful instruction for how the people should follow behind the ark as it is brought into the promised land. He says that when those carrying the ark reach the river they should “stand still in the Jordan.” It had to be a weird moment with everyone looking and wondering what was about to happen. It was a spectacle, a moment that Naval would have loved. At some point, probably after everyone had settled down and started to wonder if Joshua had his act together, God parted the water. The people then walked into the promise on dry land with the spectacle proving that God was fulfilling his promise by his effort alone.

Crucifixion was a spectacle too. 

On the same morning that I read Joshua 3 I also read 2 Corinthians 7. “I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting…For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” Godly grief is a spectacle: something that demands our attention in a way that leads us to living a little more like Jesus, and living like that makes us a spectacle to the rest of the world.

Now here is the point. We’ve got to remember Joshua 3, and the cross; we’ve got to “fix our eyes on Jesus” in order for the spectacle of our grief to work. We’ve got to see the beauty of Jesus, commanding our attention, so that we become so enamored that even grief is a welcome price for deeper communion with him.

So what should we do about this right now?

1. Spend 2 minutes preaching the gospel to yourself. Look at the attention-commanding image of Jesus on the cross and allow yourself to be struck by his love for you.

2. Spend 2 minutes asking where you are grieving over your own behavior or attitudes. Then pray through these, asking if God is calling you to step toward a different behavior that reflects more of the beauty and purpose of Jesus.

This won't be easy, but trying hard is a trailing indicator of having experienced grace.