June 5th~Undivided Attention

1 Kings 11:1-43


2 Chronicles 9:29-31

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

King Solomon died, and while he may have had a terrific start to his reign, by the end of his time, the wheels had come off of all he had accomplished. What happened? Simply put, he got distracted and lost focus of what was most important — his relationship with the Lord.

We know that Solomon was the wisest man to ever live. However, in his arrogance and neglect, Solomon not only allowed but invited the worship of false gods into Jerusalem (1 Kings 11:1-6). Though he was wise, he was not perfect. He made mistakes, foolish mistakes.

As a result of his polygamy (which was a perversion of God’s intent for marriage) and his intermarriage, which was in direct disobedience to God’s statutes, Solomon was wooed to worship the foreign deities of his wives. Even after divine warning, he chose to ignore the Lord and practice idolatry. Idolatry was a sin that God would not endure. Thus, He unleashed His judgment on Solomon and his kingdom, which came in the form of a split in the country.

Again, Solomon lost his focus. His attention was divided among his many gods. Therefore, God divided his kingdom. Too many loves in our life cause us to forget our first love — the Lord (Revelation 2:4, 5).

If we lose focus of what is important, then we lose sight of our purpose. If we don’t remember where we started or what the Lord has done for us, then we forget where we are going or what we are supposed to do. Distraction is one of Satan’s most effective strategies to neutralize God’s people. Distracted Christians disqualify themselves from being effective ambassadors. With interest in many loves in life, they lose sight of their first love. As a result, He is neglected and His mission is forgotten.

Daily Reflection

Solomon was guilty of neglecting the first two commandments of God. “Do not worship any other gods besides Me. Do not make idols of any kind... You must never worship or bow down to them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, who will not share your affection with any other god” (Exodus 20:1-5). Why do you think idolatry is so offensive to God?

When Christ was warning the Church in Ephesus, He said this, “I have this complaint against you. You don’t love Me as you did at first. Look how you have fallen from your first love. Turn back to me again and do what you did at first” (Revelation 2:4, 5). Many loves tend to crowd out your first love. How do you avoid repeating Solomon’s sins and losing sight of what is most important in life?

Does God have your undivided attention? How are you doing with staying focused on Him and what He has for you to do here?

BiAY.org |Day 156 — 209 Days to Go