The Nudge – Devotion 177 – SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

Leo has this way of getting our attention. Yes, he whines…a lot. He rings the bell at the door. He even has a way of speaking that lets us know he means business. These are all obvious and quite loud. We get it – he wants something. But eventually most of these can be ignored. After all, he wants attention all the time. He rings the bell way too many times. And he whines way too much. So we adjust. But there is one thing he does that we cannot ignore.

If I come home from work and am on my phone, he will not have any of it. If I open my computer and work on a few last projects, he isn’t going to let that go easily. Instead, he climbs up next to me and nudges me. He puts his face between me and whatever I am working on. His wet nose moves my hand and I am left with his head right in my face. He has figured out that I will pay attention to him at this point. I will not come home and do any more work until he has gotten all of his attention first. It isn’t happening. He makes his point loud and clear. And he wins – every single time.

What I have noticed is this nudge helps me to pay attention to what is most important at the time. This nudge is sent through love to help me stop my normal pace and focus on something else. Leo helps me to refocus my attention on something else. I wonder how many things we miss in our day. I wonder what is all around us that we fail to see because we are so focused on our tasks or plans. Wouldn’t it be great if God gave us a nudge every now and then? Wouldn’t it be helpful if God would move the phone away or helps us to see beyond the things right in front of us? Actually, I think he does. Does the phone ever stop working? Does the computer ever just slow down? Is there a long line where we are waiting? Does the stop light seem to go on forever? We think of these things as annoyances. But maybe they are nudges to stop and look around. God is at work. Have you seen him? Nudge on, God – nudge on.

Focus Scripture:

Psalm 145:17-19

The Lord is just in all his ways,
    and kind in all his doings.
¹⁸The Lord is near to all who call on him,
    to all who call on him in truth.
¹⁹He fulfills the desire of all who fear him;
    he also hears their cry, and saves them.