Two Ways to Improve Sermon Attentiveness

 I gotta be honest.  No matter how motivated I am to listen and learn, it’s SO VERY difficult for me to pay attention to a sermon.  And even when I’ve had more than enough sleep, my eyelids struggle to stay open.  Is it the rush-rush to get everything done to get to church on time and then sit still for 20 minutes?  Might my lack of appreciation for a worship service be partly to blame?

 My ears catch everything at the start of the message, especially if the pastor begins with a relatable story or funny illustration.  It’s embarrassing to admit how quickly my mind starts its interrupting thoughts as if I have no control.  The weekly struggle goes something like this:

 

“Oh look who came to early service today! I should remember to pray for them.

What are we having for lunch?

I sure hope I put my phone on mute.  That time Debbie’s went off in the middle of a funeral was so embarrassing.

Focus, Sue!  This is God’s Word. You are being so disrespectful. When your dad asks what the sermon was about, what are you going to say?

My shoulders still hurt. Did all that physical therapy really help?

Those little kids in the front row are behaving so well.  They sure are cute!

Whoops, I fell off the concentration track again! Lord, forgive me and please help!” 

 

How might a well-intentioned, easily distracted, pew-sitting Christ-follower better participate in a worship service?  There are two things I do that increase my listening and learning levels.  #1 is taking my Bible to church and #2 is taking sermon notes.  This may sound pretty revolutionary for a conservative Lutheran—but it’s my workable solution.

God gave our brains the multi-tasking ability to listen and comprehend, even as our thoughts race along at a much faster speed. (This is demonstrated by a skilled sign language interpreter who signs and mouths the word of the last sentence, while listening to the next.)  A human eye can process an image in 13 miliseconds.  That means I can be paying attention to the sermon, following along in my Bible, underlining verses with my turquoise highlighter, all while writing additional information (gleaned from the sermon) in the margins.  If you are thinking this sounds complicated, give it a try.

Friends of mine bring a small notebook to take sermon (and Bible study) notes, similar to how they gathered information in (pre-computer age) college classes.  One creative woman I know adds mini-sketches or doodles to aid her attention and retention.  Making simple drawings give children a reason to listen and to share their sermon interpretations. 

Might all this Bible note-taking, highlighting and sketching distract others from hearing the message?  Unless you have a very noisy pen or do a lot of loud erasing (which I actually did hear in a service once), chances are slim for any negative results. I do pray observers are encouraged to discover what might increase their active listening in church.  After all, it is our Creator who is doing the speaking. 

 

      “Therefore, we need to pay even more attention to what we have heard,

                                so that we do not drift away."(Hebrews)