What attracts your attention?

"It’s odd how certain things at certain times attract our attention. It’s almost as if our brains focus on one sense or impression at a time. You get hurt—you notice that. Then, as the pain starts to fade, you realize you’re hungry. But the thing is—were you hungry that whole time and your brain just didn’t tell you? Or did you suddenly start to get hungry right when you stopped focusing on the pain? It makes it hard to tell how much of the world passes by every day in that slipstream between what’s really happening and what our brains register as real."
          from "Curse (Blur Trilogy Book 3)" by Steven James

We really are single tasking.  No matter how much we like to talk about multitasking - we don't.  We can't.  At least not consciously. 

We've got one brain.  It can focus on one thing.  Sure - we can quickly flip between multiple things, quite rapidly.  But still - only one at a time.

Having been in the computer field, I can tell you that this is how the early ones worked.  They had one processor.  They could do one thing.  And yes - they could "appear" to do multiple things simultaneously, but they didn't.  The truth is - the more things we tried to make them do "at the same time", the slower they actually went.  They could spend so much time trying to change between many different things that the only thing they really accomplished was to flip from one thing to the next.  On and on - all they did well was bring in the next thing they needed to do!  And the more things they tried to balance, the less productive work they actually accomplished.  We used to be called "Operating System Specialists" - and part of our job was to fine tune this balancing act between doing real work - and changing from one program to another - to make it look like the computer was doing hundreds of things at one time.  All the while - doing one thing at a time.

We are no different, as far as the way our conscious minds work.  No - I'm not talking about sub-conscious.  Just what we consciously process with our minds.  

The quote above puts it quite nicely.  One thing at a time.
But what is that one thing?  And what part do we play in deciding what that one thing is?

As usual - even for something we view as a "modern" development - the answers are in the Bible.

So lets look at some examples of what we do with our "mind" - Biblical style.  (emphasis added to each section to identify the key phrase and focus your "mind" on it)

^{Ex 13:17} When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.

This is right after the Israelites were freed from 400 years of captivity Egypt.  In this very first example, we see God knowing that His people would focus on fear if the Egyptians were to attack them.  That fear would be so bad that they'd even want to return to the horrible captivity from which God had just free them.  In order to keep that from happening, God led His people on a path that would enable a very visible demonstration of the fact that God could - and would - protect them.

^{Dt 11:13} So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— ¹⁴ then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.