Keep Those Batteries Charged!

I love my spin toothbrush. My teeth just feel cleaner.

The other day I was surprised when it stopped working. What I hadn’t realized was it had been dying for days. Slowly slowing down…until it just…stopped.

I stood there at the sink holding my fancy toothbrush that was no longer fancy. I tried to finish brushing, but it just wasn’t right without the power.

How had I managed all those years without it?

Power is like that. We don’t tend to realize how much we have until it’s gone. And it doesn’t go away all at once.

No. It slowly disappears. Bit by bit. Little by little. Until it’s gone.

I’ve noticed this happening more as the years go by. Physically, I have less energy. And it doesn’t take near as long for the reservoirs to be depleted.

And it happens spiritually, too.

We must, therefore, pay even more attention to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away. For if the message spoken through angels was legally binding and every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment, how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? (Hebrews 2:1-3a, HSCB)

Truth be told: We can’t.

Either way you want to look at it: it’s easy to drift and hard to hold on. Schedules fill up. Days are spent on the run. And I don’t know about you, but I blinked and lost this entire year. Then before we know it we have neglected our spiritual lives and like the Ephesians have left our first love (see Revelation 2:4).

As I considered using the Hebrews text, I noticed for the very first time the instruction is to not merely pay attention, but we are counseled to pay even more attention.

Going through the motions is not enough. The NIV translation paints the clearest instruction, “we must pay the most careful attention.” I imagine there will be as many different ways that will happen as there are believers. I’ve got my list, do you?

Here’s what I believe, if we become more intentional in our attention we will be less likely to find ourselves with spiritually dead batteries drifting away.

Now if you’ll excuse me I need to hunt for some AAA batteries.