We live in an instant society. We need gratification not now, but yesterday. Our desires come pre-packaged with impatience. Many people blame the proliferation of media for this, and there’s no doubt that digital everything has left us somewhat scattered.
I’d wager there’s a basic human truth lurking underneath our attention span deficit. Maybe our great-great-great grandparents could sit and read several chapters of a book easier than we can, but—as Jesus knows—tarrying one hour in unpleasant tasks of quiet concentration never has been something humans do naturally.
At the root of short attention spans lies a simple problem of disobedience.
Short Attention and Long Obedience
About a year ago, I read an essay (“The Politics of Long Joy” by Alan Jacobs, an English professor at Wheaton College) that awakened me to the ways in which my short attention span is a fundamental flaw, something that exists so deeply within me that it has the capacity to distort everything I do.
In the essay, Jacobs explores the difference between short joy and long joy. Short joy is the happiness that comes from our expectations being met, our latest desires being fulfilled, getting what we want in the moment. Long joy is what comes from constant, unwavering devotion to God, no matter whether our lives are going well or terribly.
Jacobs’ essay struck me because it reminded me one of the most basic traits of a good creature—of a Jesus follower, a Christian—is firmness of resolve. Dedication. Unwavering commitment. The art of daily doing whatever I am supposed to be doing.
I’m constantly tempted to distraction from this “doing.” On any given day, dozens of things compete for my attention, and I’m prone to let them compete. I take phone calls when I need silence; I answer emails when I need focus; I go down rabbit trails on the Web when I need to be gathering particular information.
Following God, Moment by Moment
One of my favorite ways to disobey is by surfing the Internet. This doesn’t make me unusual. It makes me part of a mass of online lurkers, flitting away precious hours by getting lost in a million digital trails. We all know how the Web can lead to the exercise of obviously bad habits—pornography and gambling account for a great deal of the total of all Web traffic. It also can lead to the bad habit of wasting time. That’s no small threat for people who have been admonished to “make the best use of the time, for the days are evil” (
I used to think my problem was that I exist in a multi-media, multi-task driven environment. I used to think I was just a chronic procrastinator, but that’s not a good enough explanation, and it doesn’t help me solve anything. The truth is, I’m a creature of God. It’s my responsibility to have resolve and be obedient to the long, patient work I’ve been asked to do.
We often hear the phrase “what God created you to do” in terms of lofty ambition, but we also should hear it in terms of obligation. It’s important to know our God-given dreams, but also what we’re supposed to be doing, as well as what we’re supposed to be doing right now.
There are plenty of inspiring pictures of big obedience: Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Theresa, et al. However, we must not forget small obedience, which is one piece of long obedience we should be focusing our attention on our day-to-day duties—and on doing them well. We must tarry with the Lord not because it’s interesting or especially pleasant or exciting, but because that’s what God wants His creatures to do.
