Pillar Journal
Slow down with us, to be captivated by Christ in an age of distraction. “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”
St. John, in his Gospel, records John the Baptist saying of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” St. John was inviting the crowds then, and us still, to slow down, look up, pay attention, “the lamb of who takes away the sin of the world.”
There is so much vying for our attention, like sirens in Homer’s Odyssey, calling for our affections. It’s not all bad either, that’s where it gets sort of tricky. A quick inventory of many of our lives includes an alarm sounding well before the sun’s rising, hustling kids out of bed, into clothes, off to school (“Is your lunch packed? Is your homework done? No, you can’t wear that. Don’t forget your violin.”). And then we race off to work hoping to get there before we’re too embarrassingly late. We do the best we can to get the job done while we’re there but have to leave a little early to get to the volleyball match or the soccer game, and then home for a late dinner before packing the lunches and hounding the homeworkers.
If we’re lucky, somewhere in there, will be a few moments of quiet which most of use diligently to scroll the social media feeds out of some fear we’ll otherwise miss out on something so very important, like the latest on Taylor Swift’s relationship with Travis Kelce (Are they still together anyway?). And then we’re back at it again the next day, one day closer to the glorious weekend we often waste away with chores and events and more things that keep us everything but quiet, awake, attentive. We live life at a torrid pace.
And that’s just how we try to manage time. Add to it advertisements, podcasts, websites, news feeds, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and the seemingly endless notifications that alert our hearts to things that we could probably do without knowing (like the average amount of time I spent on my phone this past week as compared to previous weeks. Thank you, Apple, now I feel bad about that too.) and of course we’re going to find ourselves distracted, wired until exhaustion.
Even if your calendar isn’t full of appointments and to-dos, most of us still fill our days with worry and anxiety, gossip and distraction. And St. John pierces through the distractions, , “Behold, the lamb.” He cried out, “slow down. Look up. Pay attention. The living God is on the move. Jesus Christ is among us. The one who takes away the sin of the whole world.”
Reflecting on this moment in John’s Gospel, Lanta Davis offers in a book titled Becoming by Beholding, these words, “Behold often introduces the unexpected and captivating. It asks us quite literally to hold on to what we see, to contemplate and be transformed by it. When John tells us to “behold” the Lamb of God, he’s not just telling us, “Look over here for a second.” He’s telling us to look so carefully, with such utterly captivated attention, that we are changed by what we see.”
That line captured my attention, “look so carefully, with such utterly captivated attention, that we are changed by what we see.”
That’s a hope and prayer I have for Pillar this season. That we’ll be so utterly captivated by the person of Jesus Christ that we’ll be changed by what we see.
And, just to be forthright, there will be a lot seeking to attract your attention. Pundits and politicians have made their case for your vote, and they might just grab your heart too. Beyond that, there will be some global, national or local crisis that leaves you spinning and your heartaching. There’s likely to be some kind of drama that draws you in and manipulates you into behaving in ways that aren’t true to who you are. There is probably going to be some family dynamic that occupies your soul and consumes your mind. That’s just how it usually goes.
In the midst of it all, we want to be a place and a space, a community that serves as an invitation, an invitation to slow down long enough and open our hearts wide enough to hear John’s invitation, “Behold, the lamb of God.” He’s among us. He’s on the move. We want to be the kind of community, amidst all the noise and hurry, amidst all the sirens wooing for your affections, that is so utterly captivated by the person of Jesus Christ, that we’ll be changed by what we see.
Slow down with us, to be captivated by Christ in an age of distraction. “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”
