How Radio Static Changed How I Think.

At the risk of aging myself, I’m going to take you back a few years – back to a time when cars didn’t have Bluetooth connections to cell phones or MP3s. Cars didn’t have 6 CD changers or even CD players at all. If you were lucky, you had a radio and a cassette player. When I bought my first car, I used the cassette player so often that it got tired of fully ejecting tapes. Time after time a long strand of brown tape trailed the cassette as I pulled it from my car stereo. Afraid I’d ruin the tapes for good, I relied upon my radio more and more.

For my daily commute and travels the radio worked perfectly – but longer car trips proved a bit more challenging. Signals from stations along the way would eventually fade the further I traveled. More than once inconveniently mid-song static began to grow. Not wanting to give up on a song I was enjoying, I’d focus on the words, straining to hear the lyrics through the increasing noise. Sometimes I was amazed how well I could tune out the rather loud, distracting crackles and still hear the words. Despite the annoying radio fuzz, I could still hear and sing to my favorite songs as the station faded away.

I’m not sure why I thought of my old car stereo recently, but as my memories took me back, I realized there’s a powerful lesson in radio static. I had a choice to focus my attention on the lyrics or the fuzz. If I chose the crackles, I would have turned my station and attention elsewhere. Or, I could choose to focus on the lyrics and continue to hear it despite the distraction. Isn’t that exactly what our lives are like? We have the power to choose what message we listen to. In our busy days, do we choose to focus on God’s word, on His whisper even when the world’s clamor gets louder and louder warring to steal our attention? Do we quickly accept a word of discouragement from an unkind individual, or listen to the worlds of Romans 5:8 that tell us we are loved or to Genesis 1:27 that tells us we’re made in His image? Which message that should fill our heart, which should be disregarded? When the world tries to give you an unwelcomed dose of discouragement, remind yourself that it’s static, pure static. Give it the same time, energy, and consideration as you would radio static. You would never turn on a station that is only fuzz, so why listen to words that contradict God’s word?

The next time people are situations try to break you down or discourage you, remind yourself – it’s static. It deserves no more of your thoughts or attention than radio static does. Choose to focus on God’s word, not the world’s static. Turn your heart and ears to Him, remind yourself of His word and in turn exchange discouragement for blessing.

But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” Luke 11:28

Do you get occasionally caught up by “static” too? How do you tune out the world’s static? What has helped you stay focused on God’s promises for you? Click on the dialog bubble at the top of the post and join the conversation. I’d love to hear from you!

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