Deleting Candy Crush

 I'm sure you've heard of Candy Crush. I had, but had never played it. In an idle moment a couple of weeks ago, I downloaded it. There's been plenty of time for distractions during this pandemic, that's for sure! Especially, the past couple of weeks, since I am nursing a stress fracture in my foot. (I tried ignoring it, but that didn't work so well. It had gotten worse until I truly began to rest it a few days ago.)

Candy Crush is fun! It is inherently rewarding, and exciting, and it gives the illusion of accomplishment. I found myself focusing intently on passing level after level. I even broke my own "rule" and spent money to buy the power-ups occasionally! 

Spending money wasn't the problem, though, in the end. I can certainly see that being a problem for people, but my problem was the focus. Sometime yesterday morning, I read Philippians 4:8: "Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."

I had already been aware that I was spending an awful lot of time and energy on Candy Crush, but this verse pulled me back into a Biblical focus with a bang! Now, there's nothing wrong with Candy Crush, just like there's nothing wrong with technology. But we only have so many minutes in a day, and we only have so much focus and energy to spend...

I was spending so much time, focus, and energy on Candy Crush that I wasn't interacting with my family as I'd prefer. I wasn't reading my Bible as much as I usually did. The house wasn't as clean as usual (but I can't blame Candy Crush for that, that's because of my foot pain--lol). You get the idea. 

I want to be clear: It's not Candy Crush that was the problem! I could've been (and have been in the past) distracted from focusing on God by so many things. The only way to assess this is to think about what we've been focusing on instead of God and His goodness. 

So, take a moment today. Assess what you're focus is on in this pandemic. Are you obsessively watching the news? Texting with a friend? Worrying? Playing a game? Even inherently "good" activities like reading books, exercising, or cleaning can be a wrong-focus if it's replacing your God-focused activities and thinking. And God-focused activities and thinking don't have to be individual activities like reading the Bible or memorizing Scripture! Interacting with your family members can be a way of serving God, especially if you intentionally display God-honoring characteristics during the interactions. 

So I deleted Candy Crush. And intentionally started a puzzle (which by the end of the day, had drawn in several family members for a bit of time). And downloaded a new Scripture memorization app. And played a game with my kids. 

May God continue to lead me in His direction, all the days of my life.