Discipleship, Distraction and Focused Attention (Isaiah 50:4-11)
From Pastor Robert
Set Your Face: The War for Your Attention
Ours may not be the most distracted age in human history, but we certainly have more attention stealers today than ever before. Notifications, news feeds, endless content, and the ever-present visual noise from our devices challenge even the most disciplined among us. The average person picks up their phone over 90 times a day, and for many of us, the first interaction we have each morning is with our smartphones. That often sets the tone for a day filled with distraction, and distraction can be genuinely dangerous to our discipleship.
A Morning Habit That Changed Everything
The prophet Isaiah introduces us to a radically different way of living. Isaiah 50:4 tells us that each morning, our Servant Savior Jesus Christ listened for his Father's voice: "Morning by morning he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught." Jesus himself explains this disciplined listening in John 12:49–50: "The Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment, what to say and what to speak... So whatever I speak, I speak as the Father has told me." Those morning listening times set the course for his day. They shaped everything he said and did.
Focused, Not Distracted
When opposition came, beatings, shame, mockery, and certain death, he did not flinch or look for an exit. "I have set my face like a flint" (Isaiah 50:7). He was focused and determined, not distracted. Nothing could pull him off course. Our Servant Savior was on a mission of love for his people, and his faithful obedience carried him all the way to the cross and through it to resurrection glory. In this, he is also our model; his attention was fixed entirely on his Heavenly Father.
Love Is the Strongest Motivation
Here is the thing about discipline and focus: rules and routines alone will never sustain them for long. Guilt and self-improvement don’t motivate us for long. What truly frees us from the grip of distraction is not willpower but love. A deep and growing awareness of how much God loves us in Christ Jesus by the power of the Spirit is what drives lasting change.
The Servant Savior went to the cross not out of obligation but out of love for his people. Romans 5:8 reminds us: "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." When that love becomes real to us, something shifts. We no longer come to God's word out of duty or guilt. We come because we are loved, because the Father who spoke to his Son morning by morning is the same Father who has welcomed us into his family through faith in Christ. We come because we want to hear from the One who gave everything for us.
Distraction loses its pull when we are captured by something greater. And there is nothing greater than the love of God in Christ.
Making Real Changes
So, what has your attention these days? What distractions consistently keep you from hearing God in the Scriptures?
Start by honestly identifying what pulls you away from God's word, prayer, and purposeful living. Then make real changes. Put the phone in another room. Guard the morning. Build rhythms of quiet and attentive listening. God's word brings wisdom and love, instruction for living, and words of both comfort and challenge, but only if we are present enough to hear it.
Distraction rarely announces itself. It simply accumulates, quietly, until our attention span for God slowly shrinks and he begins to feel distant. But maybe he is not distant. Maybe we are just distracted.
The Same Spirit Lives in You
The good news is that the same Spirit who sustained the Servant Savior lives in all who are in Christ by faith. Through union with him, we have access to that same focused, flint-faced determination. Wholehearted discipleship demands our attention, and wholehearted love for Christ is what makes that possible.
Ask the LORD to set your face…to listen daily… and never look back.
Listen to Sunday’s Message HERE.
Opportunities to Serve
(For Opportunities to Serve at High Pointe, click HERE)
Volunteering in nursery or children’s ministry is a great way to get to know others at High Pointe and to serve our parents on Sunday mornings and other church gatherings. Reach out to Erin at erin@highpointeaustin.org.
God has blessed each of us with unique gifts and talents, and at High Pointe, we believe serving is how we use those gifts to bless others and advance His kingdom.
Whether you have 30 minutes a week or several hours, there's a place for you to serve in our children's ministry, as greeters, with the hospitality team, media/tech support, building and grounds, safety, community outreach efforts, and through administrative support. Reach out to find out more today: info@highpointeaustin.org.
Resources of the Week
Life at High Pointe
Spring Life Classes
Life Classes are meant to equip High Pointe for life as a Christian. Our spring classes are from January 25th - May 24th. Click here to see which Life Classes are being offered!
Sunday AM Preaching Schedule: Pray regularly for the ministry of the Word at High Pointe. Also, prepare for our gatherings by reading the sermon text, thinking it through, and asking questions about the text before Sunday. Here is our (tentative) preaching schedule designed to help you prepare for Sundays:
March 22 | Luke 15:1-32 | Lost and Found | Pastor Juan Sanchez
March 29 | Luke 16:1-17 | You Cannot Love God and Money | Pastor Juan Sanchez
April 5 | EASTER | Luke 16:19-31 | The Rich Man and Lazarus | Pastor Juan Sanchez
April 12 | Luke 16:18 | What the Bible says about Divorce and Remarriage | Pastor Juan Sanchez
April 19 | Isaiah 53 | The Atoning Servant Who Suffers and Rises Again | Pastor Robert Cline
April 26 | Isaiah 59:14-21 | The Only Feasible Option: Yahweh Himself will Accomplish It | Pastor Robert Cline
May 3 | Luke 17:1-10 | Our Life Together | Pastor Juan Sanchez
May 10 | Luke 17:11-19 | A Thankful Heart | Pastor Juan Sanchez
May 17 | Luke 17:20-37 | When Will the Kingdom Come? | Pastor Juan Sanchez
May 24 | Isaiah 60 | Light and Glory in the Risen City | Pastor Robert Cline
May 31 | Isaiah 61:1-11 | Spirit Filled Servant Brings Jubilee Freedom | Pastor Robert Cline
Begin praying as you prepare to join us this Sunday at 10:00 a.m.
Gospel Partner of the Month: Our Work in Cuba
1. Predica Fiel
In our approach to missions at High Pointe, we not only seek to send our best, but we also want to equip and encourage those who are already serving in the field. One of the ways to do that is to provide training for national pastors and missionaries. Predica Fiel is a training ministry that equips pastors, missionaries, and church leaders in expositional teaching and preaching. They provide training workshops throughout the island of Cuba and the Spanish-speaking world.
Please pray that the Lord will give them favor and fruitfulness in their work. Pray that the Lord would grant them continued opportunities to train pastors, missionaries, and teachers. And pray that the Lord would provide all the resources they need to do their work.
2. First Baptist Church & Seminary, Santa Clara, Cuba
High Pointe established a partnership with FBC Santa Clara in the 1990s. In fact, the Lord allowed High Pointe to have a significant role in helping the church start a seminary to raise uppastors and seminaries.
Pray that the Lord would provide all the seminary needs to train pastors and missionaries.
On-Call Pastor
To better care for you, High Pointe, we have an “on-call” pastor available for emergencies after office hours. To reach the on-call pastor, call 512-837-7725, extension 1.
