According to a limited Google search I just conducted (which, I confess, an expert does not make), between 3%-5% of the US population has some form of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). I am not a medical professional, so I don’t have the requisite education or understanding to really argue for or against those numbers. But, personal experience makes me feel like those numbers might be painfully low. Perhaps it’s true that most of us don’t have an attention issue at an internal level, but it is extremely hard to argue that our attention isn’t drawn in multiple directions on a daily, if not minute by minute basis. In our modern economy, attention has become a resource companies are scrambling to buy and sell, and it is undeniably limited.
Several months ago, I watched a documentary on Netflix entitled The Social Dilemma. One of the things that struck me as I watched was how much effort various companies put on keeping our attention for just seconds longer. Everything is custom tailored to entice us to keep listening, reading, scrolling, and engaging. While what we see beyond our handheld distraction devices is certainly less tailored to our personal preferences, there are so many sources calling for extremely divided attention.
While what we see beyond our handheld distraction devices is certainly less tailored to our personal preferences, there are so many sources calling for extremely divided attention.
On my short daily drive from my house to First Baptist Church, which is only about 1 mile in duration, I see several yard signs inviting me to contact various companies to fix my roof, replace my windows, power wash my house, or mitigate multi-legged pests. As I drive, my radio is always playing filling the air with a variety of emotion inducing sounds which beckon me to listen, sing along, and seek some more. In between these songs, the radio host reminds me of various movies, television shows, coming events, and restaurants even further dividing my attention internally. And, all of this occurs in my short 3-minute commute on any given morning.
While relatively few of us may have Attention Deficit Disorder, many of us struggle with a deficit of attention. We are constantly confronted by a seemingly unending inundation of tailor made distractions calling for our very divided attention. As an article in the Berkley Economic Review puts it, “We face attention’s scarcity every day; while ‘paying attention’ to one thing we ignore others.” The struggle is real and we’ve all experienced it. The question we must answer is this: With so many and so much fighting for a share of our attention, what is worth the investment?
With the heavy demand for our attention, perhaps it is appropriate for us to begin considering how we steward that precious and limited resource.
A term that often gets used in the church is “stewardship.” Often, when pastors start talking about stewardship, people start looking for the doors. When a pastor talks about stewardship, it almost always means they’re asking for money, which is both a necessary and proper thing to do from time to time. A more accurate view of stewardship, however, is a consideration of the investment of the whole of one’s life. This includes a person’s time, talent, and treasures of all kinds, not just money. With the heavy demand for our attention, perhaps it is appropriate for us to begin considering how we steward that precious and limited resource.
Colossians 3:1-2 reads, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” This text provides a principle that should guide the allocation of our attention. It’s not a call to hide ourselves away and live out some form of monasticism. Rather, it is a reminder to keep the sacrificial life of Christ and our calling to follow Him as the primary factor that determines how and where we focus our hearts and minds. Because, it is undeniable that the focus of our attention will determine the direction, quality, and content of our actions.
Attention is a limited resource and a failure to properly invest it inevitably RESULTS in a deficit creating a burden that reaches well beyond ourselves.
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to waste my life biting on the click bait provided by some custom made algorithm. I don’t want the precious moments of my life to be diluted by fractured and divided attention. I want to be invested my attention in things that truly matter. As the British missionary C.T. Studd famously wrote, “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past…”
Attention is a limited resource and a failure to properly invest it inevitably results in a deficit creating a burden that reaches well beyond ourselves. It is our friends, families, coworkers, and the community at large that is most effected. Our inattention becomes their loss and the world is less because of it. So, put the phone down. Turn the devices off. Be attentive and live in the space and with the people around you. Don’t sacrifice your attention on trivial things. Spend it wisely on the people and opportunities that God graciously provides.
