Whitfield’s life was anything but simple; constantly preaching, constantly traveling, constantly raising money for the poor, constantly embroiled in conflict. Have I been simple?  What does Whitfield mean by this question?  Well, it seems that he is longing for an undivided and undistracted heart toward God and people. We know that just a few pages later in Dallimore’s book, he quotes Whitfield as saying, “I hope the good of souls and the glory of God will be my only principle of action.”  With all the pressing demands and distractions swirling in Whitfield’s life, his question every night was, “Have I been simple?”

George Whitfield lived in the 18^th century (1714-1770) and was one of the greatest evangelists and preachers of his or any generation.  Whitfield was known for his dynamic oratory skills and his “open air-preaching.”  When someone once asked for a copy of his sermon manuscript, Whitfield responded, “Well, I have no inherent objection, if you like, but you will never be able to put on the printed page the lightning and thunder.”  Yet for all of his God-given “thunder and lightning,” Whitfield never relied upon his giftedness.  Instead, every night he would open his diary and probe his soul with a series of difficult questions.

Arnold Dallimore records this series of 15 questions in his great book George Whitfield.  While all the questions are extremely helpful and probing, question 7 attracted my attention the most.  The question asks, “Have I been simple and recollected in everything?”

Now Whitfield’s life was anything but simple; constantly preaching, constantly traveling, constantly raising money for the poor, constantly embroiled in conflict. Have I been simple?  What does Whitfield mean by this question?  Well, it seems that he is longing for an undivided and undistracted heart toward God and people. We know that just a few pages later in Dallimore’s book, he quotes Whitfield as saying, “I hope the good of souls and the glory of God will be my only principle of action.”  With all the pressing demands and distractions swirling in Whitfield’s life, his question every night was, “Have I been simple?”

This is certainly reflected in the teaching of Jesus when he was asked what the greatest commandment was:  “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:38-39).  Life boiled down to its common denominator is fairly simple—love for God and love to man.

An undistracted and undivided heart.

Fast forward 304 years from the time of Whitfield’s birth.  Think about all the distractions and diversions that intrude upon our daily lives.  Obviously, some intrusions are good, but others can be unnecessary.  For example, consider your smartphone for a moment.  Tony Reinke, in his new book 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You, states, “I am no stranger to the instinctive phone grab (every 4.3 minutes), but I wanted to see if others shared this pattern, so I surveyed eight thousand Christians about social-media routines.  More than half of the respondents admitted to checking a smartphone within minutes of waking.  When asked whether they were more likely to check email and social media before or after spiritual disciplines on a typical morning, 73 percent said before.  This reality is especially concerning if the morning is when we prepare our hearts spiritually for the day.”  Beeps…Pings…alerts…notifications…Some of them are necessary while many of them are not.  Surely we cannot go back to the pre-iPhone era, nor would we want to.  There is tremendous technological advance within the small cavity of the iPhone.  For instance, as Reinke points out, “Your GPS app possesses thirty thousand times the processing speed of the seventy-pound onboard navigational computer that guided Apollo 11 to the surface of the moon.”  Truly this advance is a gift of God, but as we know—good gifts can become bad gifts when they crowd out the affection we should have for God and our neighbors.  Too often, we become distracted from the “weightier matters of the law.”

So, have you been simple today?  This question posed by Whitfield over 300 years ago is much more difficult to answer in 2018 just in terms of the vast array of distractions and diversions.  Whereas Whitfield cherished the opportunity to be alone in God’s presence, many today seem to have an allergic reaction if the radio is not on, or the Wi-Fi is not working, or if your significant other doesn’t immediately respond to your “disappearing” Snap Chat.  Whitfield valued silence and solitude, but many today (both students and adults!) cannot stand to be alone or to experience silence.

Reinke, quoting Blasé Pascal, states:  “I have discovered that all the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber…Hence it comes that men so much love noise and stir; hence it comes that the prison (house) is so horrible a punishment; hence it comes that the pleasure of solitude is a thing incomprehensible.”

Often times we crave distraction and diversion because we do not have to think about God, ourselves and the eternity that awaits us.  Those heavy realities can disturb, upset, and awaken us.  However, if we are getting the latest AP or ESPN notification, that momentary update can often turn our affection for God to something transient and trivial.

Yet, I would suggest that like a fine wine, Whitfield’s question is more pertinent today than ever: Have I been simple?  Are you seeking to love the Lord and your neighbor, or is your heart crowded with the weeds of diversion and distraction?

Robby Grames is a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America and is pastor of Colfax Center PCA in Holland, Iowa.