By Lt. Colonel Dina Graciani, SW Division
We must be anchored in Christ to avoid drifting from Him.
“We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.” — Hebrews 2:1 (NIV)
Do Nothing and Drift
My husband and I are stationed in the beautiful SW Division and live in Phoenix, AZ, where the temperature regularly exceeds 100 degrees in the summer months. Some time ago, we had the opportunity to float down the Salt River with my sister and her husband. It was a typical hot summer day, and we decided to spend the day drifting down this beautiful waterway. Each of us were on our own tube and loosely tied together. We pulled along an extra tube with a cooler that stored our lunch and drinks.
Floating down this river takes several hours, depending on your starting and ending points, the daily water flow speed, and how often you stop. It’s a great way to get cooled off while just drifting with the flow of the water. What a day it is to look at the unique scenery of the desert, jumping into water when we got too hot, or pulling to the riverbank to have lunch or enjoy one of our cold drinks. As we drifted, we noticed some folks with paddles rushing their way down the river, but others like us were leaning back in our tubes and letting the flow of the water calmly carry them along. It was a fun, relaxing and memorable day. I understand why over 100,000 people float down this river each summer!
Drifting in a river is a good thing when the goal is to cool off, relax, and enjoy the scenery on a hot summer day in Arizona. However, drifting is a harmful thing when building relationships. Staying connected and maintaining a strong relationship requires being attentive. Be it marriage, siblings, friendship, co-workers, or others, all relationships require the work of being attentive or paying attention to keeping the relationship healthy and strong. Do we spend time together? Talk and listen to each other? Do we truly take time to enjoy each other’s company? Failure to being attentive to our relationships leads to drifting apart. This is true in any relationship and certainly true in our relationship with Jesus.
The Subtle Danger
One of the most subtle dangers in the Christian life is to spiritually drift. A person doesn’t drift from Jesus because they decide to abandon their relationship with Him. It starts with small compromises and seemingly innocent adjustments to blend in with the world. These compromises can easily become the norm, accepting the standards of the world in place of the standards of God’s Word and in our relationship with Jesus. As we all know, God doesn’t leave or abandon us; we are the ones who gradually but surely drift away from Him. How does this drift happen? It might begin by occasionally not going to church, rushing to get out of the house each day, and not spending time in prayer and in the Bible. The demands of a busy life can consume us to the point where we don’t make the time to being attentive to our relationship with our Savior, Jesus. And failure to being attentive to our relationship with Jesus will lead to us drifting away from Him.
Scripture teaches us, “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.” ~ Hebrews 2:1 (NIV)
Be Anchored in Christ
Make time to spend with Jesus, spend time in prayer, read and practice the Bible and watch how all other relationships become more meaningful. Keep Jesus first and the other things in life will fall into place. As the Bible reminds us in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” As we are attentive to our relationship with Jesus and seek Him first in all things, He becomes the anchor of our life. When we keep Jesus as our anchor, we don’t drift away, we are not carried away by the subtle pull from the world or the chaotic storms of life. Jesus becomes the anchor of our soul!
Charlotte Gambil once said, “The further we venture out, the stronger the anchor we will require; and the larger the life we want to live, the deeper the anchor will need to go.” Amen to this!
The Good News
The good news is that Jesus remains faithful to us! He continually invites us to return to Him, to listen to His voice, and to remain steadfast in His truth. Every day offers a fresh opportunity to renew our focus and deepen our dependence on Him and not drift away from his incredible presence in our lives.
James 4:8 states, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you”.
Let’s keep our eyes, hearts and souls on the anchor of our life, JESUS, and we will find ourselves NOT drifting!
Great songs to listen to while reading this blog:
“Make Room” by Community Worship YouTube video: Make Room (Lyrics) – Community Music
“Draw me close to You” – Gateway Worship YouTube Video: Draw Me Close | feat. Michael Bethany | Gateway Worship
August 2026 Devotional