God wants us to live in the moment

I love it when a child teaches me a lesson. This morning, I had to opportunity to sit with one of the young boys from our synagogue, while his mother went to an appointment. We had a great time as he showed me how he could play “Old School” PacMan and how cool his remote-control cars were. In between watching him and answering his questions, I tried to get some things done on my phone to get a little ahead for this afternoon and tomorrow. When the woman arrived who was relieving me to begin the next shift of watching this amazing young man, I heard her say to him, “Hey, isn’t tomorrow your birthday?”

The boy replied “Is it? Is today Monday?”

She told him yes, and he said, “Well then, I guess tomorrow is my birthday” and went right back to what he was doing.

I stopped what I was doing and thought, When was the last time I was so into the moment I was living that tomorrow wasn’t even on my mind? He was so into spending time with me that he wasn’t even a little concerned with tomorrow, even though it was his birthday.

As a husband, father, grandfather and rabbi, I spend so much time planning and preparing for what’s next that I often miss out on what I am doing in the moment. I began to think about my time with this young boy. How many times would I be able to spend time like that with him? How often will I have to influence him by speaking into his life face to face, one on one? 

I honestly became ashamed that while he was so into spending his time with me and showing me the best of his world. I was slipping out of his world and into mine as often as I could. The more I thought about the time I wasted doing things in my world, when I could have been devoting all of my time to entering his world, the more I thought about a verse of Scripture: “Then Adonai said to Moses, ‘Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the Torah and the mitzvot, which I have written so that you may instruct them'” (Ex. 24:12, TLV).

Notice the words “stay there.” In Hebrew, these words are more accurately translated “be there.”  In this verse G-D was inviting Moses into His world. G-D was about to give Moses the tablets containing the Ten Commandments. G-D knew how significant and overwhelming the experience of receiving the tablets of stone would be, and how they could have taken Moses’ attention away from the relational moments that were about to take place. It wasn’t enough for Moses to just come up and get the Tablets. G-D wanted Moses to “be there” with Him.

As I left that young boy’s home this afternoon, I thought about the fun we had, but I also thought how I had robbed myself and him of my full presence. My heart was heavy, because although I had spent several hours with him, he had invited me join him in his unique world. I was there, but I wasn’t there. {eoa}

Eric Tokajer is author of With Me in Paradise, Transient Singularity, OY! How Did I Get Here?: Thirty-One Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before Entering Ministry, #ManWisdom: With Eric Tokajer and Jesus is to Christianity as Pasta is to Italians.

Our moments are what make up our day and ultimately our life. Often, our minds are anywhere but where we are. When our body is in one place and our thoughts elsewhere, we can miss pieces of life, miss what God is doing in the moment, or a relationship opportunity. Reliving the past, attached or obsessing over outcomes in the present or future makes it impossible to live in the “now”… which is where we can find and engage God.

I studied and worked as an actress for some time and one important element of truthful acting is to learn to “Live in the moment”. This means getting and staying committed to listening to what your scene partner is saying and doing, thus responding in a truthful way. It means being focused and directly connected with your scene partner. It means living in those spaces, not speeding through them at 100 mph nor shifting into auto-pilot. It also means not over-thinking your next line, you’re last blocking movement or your current hand prop.

Real life is much the same way. We may think we’re living in the “now” but we’re often somewhere else. Living and staying in the moment is challenging- thoughts distract us, that’s why practicing focus is important.

If we’re going to enjoy life, we need to be where God is- He is in the “now” and He’s working in and through us in the very place our footsteps take us.

God doesn’t want us to continually rehash our broken places in the past, we’ve already lived it once, it is dead and gone “now”. He never meant for us to relive it multiple times.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”

Isaiah 43:18-19

Live in the present – focus on what God is doing now, and put your hope in what He will do in the future.

As believers, we have faith and hope in a blessed future in God and expect good things to come from Him- “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28

But when our thoughts about the present or future outcome of events become a distraction or obsession, we’ve crossed the line of living in peace and in the “now”. Trusting God for future outcomes allows us to focus on the present- which is precisely where we’ll find Him. We’ll also find trusting God invites peace in our moments.

Living in the moment helps produce a quality life when we:

• Spend time in solitude. Solitude allows time to seek God, to know one’s self, think through, reflect on, discover the unknown, come up with creative ideas and solutions. Solitude with God along with self-examination with no distractions produces depth of soul, heart, mind, and spirit.
• Connect fully with our kids, friends, neighbors, parents, co-workers, and even strangers- without using technology as our primary communication if at all possible. Being completely available to them and giving them our undivided attention.
• Spend time, enjoy, and interact with our God-given great outdoors.
• Work, because when we work, we work unto the Lord. He is at work in and through us in the place where He’s assigned us.

Living wholly in these spaces fully connected and engaged is a healthy way to live mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

Living in the moment is a life well spent. Where are you living your moments?

What God says about living in the moment?

Does God want us to live in the moment?

Does God want us to live one day at a time?

What does the Bible say about a moment?