I just returned from a vacation that wasn’t quite like previous ones. Because of circumstances, we weren’t able to do and go as much as we had in the past. At one point, I was asked if I was bored. I thought about it for a moment but could honestly say—I wasn’t.
Despite not being on the go a lot, there was plenty for me to focus on.
I observed fat pigeons trying to balance on skinny wires.
I tried to identify and sight birds based on their chirps and songs.
I looked at gardens and smelled flowers.
I watched people walking dogs and dogs walking people.
I took long walks.
I met and talked to new people at the bus stop.
I read . . . and read . . . and read . . . and renewed my love of reading.
And there were multiple opportunities for good conversation.
This restriction on activity gave me time to rest and reflect. Something that is often absent in our busy, task-oriented lives.
Do you know that the word boredom never appears in the Bible? The closest to the concept comes in Ecclesiastes 1:2-8 which talks about the meaningless of so much of human activity. Then in Proverbs 19:15 Solomon states that "Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless go hungry.” But that is self-induced boredom.
Then I thought about Eden. Perfection before the fall. Adam and Eve did not have games, computers, books, … but they had God-given jobs, each other, the beauty of God’s creation, and communion with God himself.
And that’s the touchstone.
While the world is telling us through commercials and social media and store ads that we need more and more, and newer and newer to be happy and fulfilled, we don’t. In fact, as I stated in an earlier blog, those are ultimately empty and unable to sustain satisfaction.
But, if we find our satisfaction in God alone, then we will be content with what He gives us at any given time. We will find purpose and meaning. We will be content. We will be spiritually engaged.
Therefore, as our lives become filled with more noise and distractions, let us remember what David said in Psalm 16:11:
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Despite not being on the go a lot, there was plenty for me to focus on.
I observed fat pigeons trying to balance on skinny wires.
I tried to identify and sight birds based on their chirps and songs.
I looked at gardens and smelled flowers.
I watched people walking dogs and dogs walking people.
I took long walks.
I met and talked to new people at the bus stop.
I read . . . and read . . . and read . . . and renewed my love of reading.
And there were multiple opportunities for good conversation.
This restriction on activity gave me time to rest and reflect. Something that is often absent in our busy, task-oriented lives.
Do you know that the word boredom never appears in the Bible? The closest to the concept comes in Ecclesiastes 1:2-8 which talks about the meaningless of so much of human activity. Then in Proverbs 19:15 Solomon states that "Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless go hungry.” But that is self-induced boredom.
Then I thought about Eden. Perfection before the fall. Adam and Eve did not have games, computers, books, … but they had God-given jobs, each other, the beauty of God’s creation, and communion with God himself.
And that’s the touchstone.
While the world is telling us through commercials and social media and store ads that we need more and more, and newer and newer to be happy and fulfilled, we don’t. In fact, as I stated in an earlier blog, those are ultimately empty and unable to sustain satisfaction.
But, if we find our satisfaction in God alone, then we will be content with what He gives us at any given time. We will find purpose and meaning. We will be content. We will be spiritually engaged.
Therefore, as our lives become filled with more noise and distractions, let us remember what David said in Psalm 16:11:
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
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