“You know, if you stuck around longer than 2.2 seconds, you’d score more food.” I glanced down, but the furry ball of gray had already bounded down the basement steps out of sight.

While grocery shopping last week, I found a large tray of chicken on sale. Since I’m presently quarantined with three guys who eat roughly their body weight each week (kidding, but it seems like it!), I purchased the discounted meat and brought it home to cook and put in the freezer.

Of course my cooking-and-freezing activity was soon joined by two furry supervisors, who peered up at me with soulful eyes.

We adopted two kittens from our local animal shelter about five years ago. They couldn’t be more different in personality. Kookie is a fairly normal cat, content to sit quietly on any available lap or doze in the sun for hours.

Koala on the other hand? Well, I’m fairly certain he has ADHD. (Not sure if feline ADHD is a thing, but if it is, he’s definitely on the spectrum.) He’s more like a dog than a cat, racing from one place to the next, distracted by the tiniest little thing.

Back to my chicken story—

Both cats showed up, watching my every move as I chopped up the chicken. After a minute or so, I gave them each a morsel. Kookie ate her piece like the dainty lady she is and continued to sit at my feet. Koala wolfed down the piece I gave him and raced off to his next adventure down the basement steps.

But I still had A LOT of chicken to dice and put into freezer bags.

Guess who got more bites of chicken? Well, of course Kookie, the one who patiently sat at my feet. While Koala was busy downstairs chasing whatever had piqued his interest, Kookie scored more of her favorite treat.

I couldn’t help but think about the current events we are experiencing right now, and about spiritual food. For reasons beyond our control, churches across our country have closed their doors. We can no longer gather together as the body of Christ, worshiping in the same building, taking in the rich nourishment of the Word of God through our spiritual leaders.

But is our spiritual food out of reach?

Absolutely not—but it will require that we sit at the feet of Jesus. It will require that we make conscious choices.

Never before have we had access to such a huge amount of spiritual resources. In our homes, we have multiple copies of Scripture. Online we have hundreds of Bible study apps, books, concordances, and dictionaries. Each Sunday thousands of churches are streaming live services, while still others have on-demand Sunday schools, children’s classes, and prayer groups.

We have absolutely no excuse to starve spiritually during this time. But I fear some will.

Why? Because, just like my cat Koala, it’s extremely easy to get distracted.

Instead of sitting quietly at the feet of Jesus, it will be far too easy to allow the chaos of family life, daily chores, phones, and online entertainment to pull us away.

So what can we do?

As a teenager, I learned a profound principle from a Bible study teacher—It’s God that does the work of spiritual growth in our lives, but He can only do that if we exercise the discipline to put ourselves before Him.

It will take discipline, my friend.

Discipline to gather the family together and make online church a priority. Discipline to set that alarm (even if you don’t have to go to work!) in order to have a quiet time before the household erupts into action. Discipline to turn the news off and pray instead of hanging on to every word and descending into panic.

No, we don’t have to be afraid of a spiritual drought.

But we do need to be aware that the devil is alive and well during this time, seeking whom he may devour. Distraction is one of his favorite weapons.

Don’t let him win. Don’t allow distraction to be the catalyst to spiritual malnourishment.

Sit at the feet of Jesus. There’s plenty of food to go around.

“And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” {Luke 10:41-42}

Do you enjoy the combination of a good story and Bible study? If so, you may also enjoy my book, Tales from Toddlers. Each of its 30 days includes a true story, devotional, and a Bible study you can complete on your own. Click HERE for more information. If you choose to purchase, THANK YOU! Your support helps keep this ministry going, and my blog ad-free. May God richly bless you!