Constant Distractions

I love the movie Finding Nemo. Yes, it’s a delightful story with real truth packed in. But the reason I really love it is Dory, the blue tang fish with short-term memory loss. She has good intentions . . . and she gets distracted easily.

I often feel like I have an inner Dory. I want to be part of something significant and useful, but I am so easily distracted by any one of a million things: the to-do list, friends, an interesting article that leads to another interesting article that leads to more time wasted on the internet.

I recently realized that the most significant and useful thing I could ever participate in is the kingdom of God. (I can hear a chorus of “Duh”s right about now.) But what does the kingdom of God mean? It’s one of those phrases I’ve heard over and over in my lifetime of church attendance. Here’s an explanation I heard recently that stuck: the kingdom of God is the rule and reign of Christ.

Jesus as king is an image my Dory mind can latch on to. Is Jesus king of my distracted thoughts and my fleeting emotions? Is he king of how I see the relationships in my life? Is he king of how I spend my time and my energy every day? While asking myself these questions has been really eye-opening, in true Dory fashion, I can’t even think through these things without getting distracted.

I need help. I need God to help me make him king. Prayer is acknowledging before God and myself that I need him. It is spending time with my heavenly Father, letting him into my wandering mind to give me direction, motivation, and courage. I go to him with my distractions and neediness and ask him to sort it all out. I ask him to reign in my mind and heart and have that translate into my words and actions for that day. I ask for focus and wisdom in the place of my Dory distractedness. I ask for eyes to see and the desire to do the daily significant and useful things of God’s kingdom. This prayer happens multiple times a day because my inner Dory needs to get reined in often.

Ephesians 5:17 really sums it up perfectly: “Don’t act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do.” When we ask him to be king of our thoughts and our actions, he is faithful to guide us.

Do you find yourself battling distraction? How do you stay focused on keeping Jesus king of your mind and life?

Kyria Talks to Patricia Raybon

Finding My Own Voice

I almost always spend part of my long daily commute listening to the radio or my iPod. I usually sing along: scatting with Ella Fitzgerald, rocking out with Robert Randolph, or attempting those strong, soaring notes with Aretha Franklin.

Lately, though, I’ve noticed an odd development: from time to time, I notice myself lip-synching rather than singing along to the music.

I haven’t analyzed this development enough to notice any sort of pattern here: for example, whether I mouth the words to gospel songs or jazz riffs, whether I bow out when it’s time to hit the high notes during the bridge of a power pop ballad, or whether I start out strong, then fade away. I just find that, without noticing it, I’ve stopped making any sound.

What makes this especially strange to me is that I have a passable singing voice. While you won’t see me on American Idol or Gospel Dream anytime soon, I have a soft but steady Bapticostal soprano, and I’ve often led songs as part of a choir.

In fact, I have secret aspirations of becoming a singer. I’ve even started assembling some wardrobe. A shimmery dress or two hang in waiting toward the right side of my closet, just above several pairs of killer pumps that mostly accessorize work outfits. I occasionally ask my hairdresser to style my layered bob into a high, fluffy flip, and I have a penchant for vintage accessories. I like to think I’ll be ready to hit the road if the Supremes get back together and need a young background member to ooh, ah, coo, and sway. Or the Exciters, or maybe the Velvettes, Vandellas, Shangri-Las, or Shirelles. (Tribute bands: call me!)

Right now, though, aspirations are really all I have. As much as I enjoy singing, I haven’t sung publicly for a while. Not only haven’t I been blending my voice with others, since it’s been a while since I sang with a choir or a praise team, but I also haven’t been singing enough to develop my own style and increase my confidence. A friend once listened to a recording of me singing, and said, “It was good, but I was waiting to hear you really put your own stamp on it. I think you were holding back.” He was right, but I haven’t done enough singing since then to overcome that. I haven’t been doing something I believe I was made to do, and it’s becoming a problem. I’ve started lip-synching, holding back even in the privacy of my own car.

I’ve occasionally run into the same issue in other areas of my life. I’ve become aware of a gift, even a calling, often connected to something I have to say. Sometimes I even make preparations to use my voice, but stop there.

For example, for several years now, I’ve had a great idea for a book. It’s a book I know would be helpful to a lot of people. But because it concerns a somewhat controversial topic, part of me dreads writing this book. I don’t really want to be seen as an expert on the topic, even though I actually am. There are other reasons I haven’t completed my manuscript, but a big one has been fear, with the result that I choose to silence the voice God gave me, even though I know he allowed me to have the experiences and gain the perspective and expertise to write the book. It’s not really a matter of finding my voice, as much as it is of using it.

From time to time, I have opinions that people find interesting. I tend to see things from unusual perspectives, and, as a writer and editor, know when I could probably develop a decent opinion piece. But I hesitate to speak out. Part of it has to do with the fear of what I see as the decline of civil public discourse, aided by the immediacy and anonymity afforded by the internet.

So I lip synch, moving my lips without really making much sound. I let someone else say what’s on my mind, or rant to a supportive group of family and friends. I keep my thoughts to myself. I don’t speak up, sometimes without realizing I’ve chosen to keep quiet.

I’m challenged when I consider the idea of finding or using a voice, and its place in the life of a Christian. For example, how do I know what it means to develop “my” voice in a society that often needs less individualism rather than more? When I don’t speak my mind, is that discernment, diplomacy, or cowardice?

When it comes to using a gift that can lead to some recognition or prominence, what’s shining the light God gave you, and what’s just showing off? How does one use such gifts for God’s glory, and avoid the trap of self-actualization for its own sake?

I’ve realized that I have some thinking to do about these issues—and that right now, I often err on the side of caution and restraint. It’s time for me to start singing, and writing, with regularity and boldness.

I’m interested in hearing your responses to the questions I’ve posed. When it comes to developing and using your gifts, how have you negotiated the tensions I’ve described? Have you ever found yourself lip synching, and how did you get past that? How is the idea of “finding a voice” compatible or incompatible with Christian practice?

Prayer Webinar with Patricia Raybon

Prayer is a mysterious concept, but it doesn't have to be confusing. Now that you've experienced the Kyria webinar with Patricia Raybon, we hope you have a deeper understanding about what prayer truly is and how to commune with God on a more profound level. What struck you about what Patricia said about the nature of prayer? How do you encounter God in prayer?

Share an example of a time God surprised you or answered a prayer in a unique way. What about a time God didn't answer your prayer but taught you something about himself? Was there anything that Patricia said that gave you a fresh perspective? How will this new thinking affect your prayer life?

You Are What You Eat

A few weeks ago I embarked on a new adventure: veganism. Maybe “adventure” isn’t the right word as much as “challenge” is.

A vegan diet is basically a step further than vegetarianism: no animal products, particularly meat, eggs, and dairy. Many vegans even go to the great length of avoiding fur, leather, wool, down, and any other item made of animal products.

A restricted diet—or any diet for that matter—is not very like me. I love food. I love sugar. I love carbs. I love chicken. And I will gladly ingest some methylcyclopropene if it means chocolate is involved. However, I’ve always had an interest in nutrition and health, and as I began learning about where our food comes from, I realized I needed to make some changes.

My vegan journey began when I watched the documentary Food, Inc., which chronicles how our food industry is run. As you might guess, it has some pretty unpleasant things to share about the food we consume and the way in which animals are treated in factory farming. After being moved by the documentary, I wanted to make sure what I’d seen was, in fact, true, so I picked up a couple books that further discussed the problems with our food industry and our penchant for filling our bodies with foods that are just not good for us. I learned about organic versus conventional fruits and veggies, grass-fed, free range meat, and the affects of our food choices on our bodies and on those who supply our food.

One thing that really stood out to me was the condition of industrial farms: the places where nearly 10 million animals are raised and killed and manufactured for us to eat. All it takes is a quick Google search to see the inhumane way animals are treated and how dirty and unhealthy these facilities are. Animals are treated as a product rather than a living being, created by a God who deeply cares about all life. They are fed foods that they are not designed to eat, and they stand or lie in their own feces in confined areas. The employees work on an assembly line, making the same repetitive movement to an animal carcass over and over. Working at such a fast pace easily allows feces and bacteria to get into our meat. Since it’s cheapest to feed herbivores corn instead of grass, there are high rates of salmonella in the beef coming out of factory farms. Instead of feeding the animals grass, most meat is treated with ammonia to kill the bacteria. Chickens are pumped full of hormones to cause them to grow twice as fast as normal.

It’s all about money. And it’s all about demand. The average American is eating more than 200 pounds of meat each year. If we want so much meat—and want it cheaply—factory farming is what we’re going to get.

So I made the personal choice to try and remove meat and dairy from my diet, my reasons being (1) for my health; and (2) as a stand against the unethical treatment of animals at factory farms.

The information presented in these documentaries and books resonated with me because of what the Bible already says about food and health and our bodies. “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16–17). As Christians, taking care of our temple requires us to be mindful of what we put into our mind, body, and spirit. Chemicals, fat, cholesterol, sugar . . . these are all tangible things we can keep out of our body to keep our temple clean and pure.

Keeping this in mind, I’ve begun to eat more wholly: whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and other natural items. I’ve found that I now think a lot more about the food I’m putting into my body—I have to consider the ingredients. I’m choosier and I eat less junk. I make less rash decisions about what to eat, and I plan ahead more. It hasn’t been easy, and I don’t always follow it to a T, but I’ve really enjoyed learning new recipes and new ways of thinking about food. 1 Corinthians 6:20 says, “You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” By consciously making healthful and ethical food choices, we can honor God and his creation.

The Bible also calls us to respect other living things. (Proverbs 12:10: “A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.”) He gave us control over the animals of the earth, but—as many argue—we have distorted that. When I saw the horrors of how some companies produce our meat, it created a natural response in me to not want to participate in supporting those companies—especially since so much of our power and voice really come through how we spend our money. As a person made in God’s image, I want to be able to stand and say, “No, this is not okay.”

Implementing these changes in my diet has brought me to a position of greater thankfulness toward God. It’s caused me to look at his creation and the food that gives us life differently. My prayers are more focused on thanking God for his provision. I am more aware of our great need and dependence on God for our sustenance, and my heart is softened to those who don’t have enough.

Cutting meat out of your diet isn’t the only response of course, but for me, I think it’s the right one for now. I don’t think that it’s wrong to eat meat and dairy products, and I do realize eating organic foods is a privilege that not many are afforded. I’m trying to do what I feel is right for me and trying to do it in a financially responsible way. What might be the right response for me may not be the right response for another. There are many ways to make a difference, including buying locally, buying organic, and buying ethical meat. Support farmers who do things the right way. Researching these topics, educating yourself about where your food comes from, and implementing changes can be a God-honoring way of living a healthier life.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).