“I almost dropped her,” I told Cary after I had brought our newborn to Mass for the first time after her birth. There I was, devoted father and steady disciple of Christ, carrying my newborn around the periphery of Immaculate Conception Church in Clinton, NJ.
“Never address your words to God while you are thinking of something else.”
Unfortunately, Grace (daughter #1) squirmed - as kids do- and I almost dropped her on the hard (read “very hard”) marble floor. Thankfully I regained control of the situation and tried my best to focus on rest of Mass.
While this story might be extreme, it surfaces an issue that a lot of us have when we go to church- we can’t focus. Maybe it’s the child squirming in your lap, the football game later in the day, the annoying person in front of you who is checking his phone or whatever… there are plenty of distractions to go around.
This might seem normal but the costs are significant. For example:
if you’re distracted you will likely not hear God’s Word proclaimed
if you’re distracted your prayers will likely be half-hearted
if you’re distracted you will be less present to those around you
if you’re distracted you might have guilt over not being able to focus
“The way in which you can pray most fervently.”
What are your distractions in church? For me, they are often in the space between my two ears. Thoughts creep in. I worry about things. Did I remember this or did I forget that…
So, as I like to do on this blog, I would like to suggest seven simple ways that you can banish distractions from your Sunday worship experience. Ready? Here goes:
Arrive 10 minutes early. This will allow you to get a good parking spot and avoid all sense of hurry.
Read the Gospel ahead of time. The night before or the morning of- either will do. When the deacon or priest finally proclaims the Gospel, you’ll be more engaged.
Sit far from doors or entry places. People walk through doors. Doors creak and squeak. Many people arrive late. You can avoid all of this by sitting closer to the front or just far away from any doorways.
Close your eyes. I wouldn’t suggest doing this for the entirety of Mass (injuries will follow) but you can certainly avoid distractions during the readings or even after Holy Communion by closing your eyeballs.
Read along with the readings. Pay attention to the words. Look for subtle things that you might have previously missed.
Silence your phone. This goes without saying. Even better- leave the darn thing in your car. The world won’t stop, really.
Make an act of thanksgiving after Mass is complete. I’ve only recently been doing this and it really works. While everyone else is barging out of church, seemingly in a hurry, you can simply kneel for 60 seconds and thank God. Ask Him to be with you during the day and to be able to offer your day back to Him.
Distractions will come. Life is like that. The key, as is often the case, is to counter the distractions with some simple techniques for staying focused. You can do this.
