John 21:20-22

Having received his commission from Jesus to care for his sheep and been given an insight into his future, Peter then became curious about others. He asked about how it was going to be for the disciple whom Jesus loved, who we assume to be John. Jesus’ response was sharp and definite. Effectively Jesus said: “Mind your own business”. It was nothing to do with Peter. All he needed to know was that he was called to follow Jesus.

Let’s face it, we are all curious about the people around us. We would be fascinated to know what their future will be. But Jesus’ words remind us all that our responsibility is for ourselves; we don’t need to know what will happen to other people. That is in God’s hands. As John drew his Gospel to a close, he wanted his readers to know that their greatest need was for each one of them to keep their eyes fixed on following Jesus.

In our busy, noisy world we face endless demands on our time and attention, and it is very easy for us to lose our focus on following Jesus. We can so easily get distracted by things that are not bad in themselves, but which lure us away from giving first place to Jesus. We need to work hard to ensure that we are tuned in to his voice. When I lived in India a key moment in my day was when I listened to the news on BBC World Service. The task of tuning in our old radio sounds simple enough but it never was! I often had to work for some minutes to get a proper signal. We need that kind of determination to keep our focus on listening to Jesus and following in his ways.

Question

What do you need to do to guard against becoming distracted from following Jesus?

Prayer

Lord help me always to make following you the priority of my life. Amen