We’ve all heard and maybe prayed prayers requesting that our minds not be distracted in worship. I’ve often wondered what people think the answer to this prayer might look like. Are we asking to pull the plug of the worshipper’s mind, so that everything about life is drained out except for a special group of thoughts about God? What if a fire alarm sounds? Do we want to hear it? Will we leave the building?

The real issue is that there are good distractions and bad distractions. Good distractions are okay; bad distractions are not. Here are some examples of bad distractions: the new mom who is so proud of her baby that she brings pictures of the child to share with her friend as they sit together in worship; or the lady in sales who peers out over the congregation, contemplating a sea of potential customers; or the man with his electronic device supposedly reading scripture but actually checking his email; or the teenage boy who can’t get over how much he enjoyed the goodnight kisses from his date the night before. These are bad distractions; no way is worship going on. Well, actually it may be going on; it’s just not worship of God.

So let’s consider good distractions. Remember the story of Moses and the burning bush? Was Moses engaged in worship? (Hint: when you see a bush on fire that isn’t burning, God speaking from it, God telling you to take off your shoes because you’re standing on holy ground, and you are in deep reverence as the two of you speak; worship is probably going on.) Moses was in awe of God; fellowship between the two took place. There was worship, and in this worship Moses had to think about his week and a lot of other things. Moses was going on a trip; he needed to pack his bags. God had a big job for him to do, and God let him know a lot of the details.

Consider David thinking about his week in the Psalms he wrote, and their use in worship. He was always thinking about his week during worship; usually his past week and his future week. He thanks God for deliverance from enemies or anticipates deliverance. He remembers sin and God’s chastening, and thinks about a lot of the things God has given him, such as power and responsibility. He thinks about things to do, like war and maintaining justice, and fulfilling his calling as a political leader. In worship he is relating God’s truth to all the things that are going on in his life. Worship wasn’t some kind of sterile, irrelevant, disassociation from reality, but the experience of knowing God and applying His truth to his life. In fact, in bringing his week into his worship, it even made David better at worship (Psalm 27:6).

A Christian businessman told a minister that on a previous Sunday while visiting in another congregation he had his mind on his business throughout the sermon he heard. The businessman received a condemning look from the minister which said, “you worthless piece of human flesh, how dare you do that in worship.” But what the minister didn’t realize was that what the businessman meant was that during the sermon he was busy applying God’s truth to how he did his business; things like being honest, responsible, and serving well. This was a good distraction. This is when it’s okay to think about your week during worship.

So, the minister is preaching about loving others, and you have enemies and people who are a real pain, and that’s part of your week. In worship, you hear about the importance of being in God’s Word, so you make a note on your bulletin, “do Bible study and prayer before checking my social media; get an accountability partner.” Your finances are not good, but you sing a hymn about God’s care and faithfulness, so you make a note to pray and work through all your anxiety and fear. You resolve to maintain first things trusting the Lord to get you through the tough times and looking to Him for wisdom.

It really is okay to think about your week during worship. You come to meet with God. You are called to live for and with Him. How can you not be thinking about your week? In fact, the more you think about your week and apply God’s truth to your life in worship, like David, the better you will worship.

Pete Hurst is a Teaching Elder in the Presbyterian Church in America and serves as Associate Pastor at Calvary Reformed Presbyterian Church (PCA), Hampton, VA. He blogs at God’s Fool, where this article first appeared; it is used with permission.