Week 3 Psalm 9
Today I had one of those bible-reader’s days…a day where big-&-pressing-&-preoccupying things are at the front of the line.
Usually I have a typical day. The routine is to start with Step 1 (when I have a time to read). Then Step 2 begins (I get on with the rest of my day).
The thing is that some days it’s hard to keep Step 1 & 2 separated.
Today my mental list of things-to-do-today had several key items on it:
Key Item #1
Key Item #2
Key Item #3
Every day has things-to-do. Not every day has Key-Things-to-do. Things that distract. Intrude. Prevent reading-focus. Things that’re basically reading interferers.
So I start reading psalm 9: I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
But today that metamorphizes into something more like ‘I’ll try to give thanks to you Lord (although I do have Key Item #1 in the back of my mind)’.
I guess there’s likely recommended ways to get mental mastery over intrusive things. But some days it’s tough to make them work.
Anyway…I think there’s a simple Reading Concentration Hierarchy:
1. Reading with attention & focus (my preferred option)
2. Reading while mentally distracted (this is the thorny one. Hard to predict. Hard to avoid. Hard to manage).
3. Not reading (technically this one really shouldn’t be on the list & I try to avoid it like-the-plague. Not reading is a simple habit to start but very difficult to break.)
Note: quote from Psalm 9:1-2 (NIV)