| How often these days, when you talk to friends or family members and ask how they are doing, is one of the first things you hear in response something along these lines: “I’m tired and worn down… I just have too much going on in my life right now… my schedule is just too busy… as hard as I try, I just can’t seem to find balance in life… things seem to be spiraling out of control!” It makes me wonder: Why is it that in our modern age with more conveniences to make life easier than we have ever had that, in general, we are, quite possibly, more tired and worn out than ever in human history? I’m sure the answer is complicated and there are a host of reasons we could discuss. One reason occurred to me lately however. It seems to me that I often focus a great deal of my time and energy pursuing what I perceive to be lacking in my life. What I mean by this is that, too often, I am not satisfied with (or grateful for) what I have. I seem driven by unfulfilled desire for more and better “stuff” than I currently possess. Under those circumstances, it’s probably not surprising that I often find myself tired and depleted. It’s like I am on an endless treadmill that I can’t escape and I have to run faster and faster in pursuit not just of “stuff,” but more and better “stuff” than I had before. I am quite certain my struggle is not unique. It seems our culture broadcasts covert (and sometimes not-so-covert) messages that say in essence: What you have is not good enough… you need to always be seeking to acquire more and better things1. These days it seems it’s not enough just to have material possessions; we seem driven by an insatiable desire for abstractions like more and better . Think about it for a minute. It’s not enough for us to have a house or car or computer, we always want one that is bigger and better and faster than the one we currently have—and almost as important, it seems, is to have one that is bigger, better, and/or faster than the one our friends and neighbors have. In our culture, one obtains status not so much by having an item but rather by being perceived to have a better item than the all the other “competition.” Sadly, our churches are not immune to our culture’s insatiable desire for abstractions. If we’re not careful, church can become just another “consumer product” where we spend all our time and energy trying to please the “customers” (otherwise known as worshippers) desires. Our church leadership can end up on an endless treadmill trying to make how we do church faster, better, cheaper, easier—in a word, more convenient for our worshippers. We live in a mobile age where people can and do travel a distance (passing many churches along the way) if they perceive a particular church meets their individual needs better than ours. The result is that our churches often end up in ruthless competition with one another to attract worshippers rather than working together in a spirit of Christian unity for the common good. This feeling that we need “something more” to be complete is as probably as old as humanity. The Apostle Paul certainly confronted this mentality on numerous occasions in his writing. It comes through loud and clear in the book of Colossians—a letter written to one of the early Christian communities that Paul started during his various missionary journeys, located in the ancient city of Colosse. After Paul left Colosse, a new teaching infiltrated the Christian community suggesting that “something else” was needed to fully experience Christ. The idea was that only those with “specialized knowledge” could really fully know Christ. Paul apparently got wind of this teaching and used his letter to the Colossians to strongly rebuke this line of thought and emphatically state his belief that we are complete in Christ—not lacking anything. In God—as revealed to us in Christ—we have all we need; there is nothing else we can achieve in this life that will somehow “complete” us. The mass feedings described in the Gospels illustrate Jesus’ complete reliance on God to provide abundantly for the material needs of him and others. In one story, Jesus feeds 5000 people; in another he feeds 4000 people. The stories are probably two separate instances, but they have common elements2. In both cases, the disciples seem to focus on the scarcity—i.e., they come to Jesus and say: “Oh my God, how are we going to feed all these people?! We don’t have enough! Please send them away so we don’t have to share what little food we have…” (Honestly, I probably would feel this way too—I don’t like to miss a meal). Jesus, on the other hand, seems to put the focus on making the most of the resources at hand and making space for God to work (i.e., he prays to God to bless the loaves and fishes) and abundantly provide for the group’s need. Notice that in each case the group eats their fill and there are baskets of “leftovers” remaining. Indeed the saying is true: little is much when God’s in it. Perhaps this insight helps us start to understand the beauty of the wisdom of Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount—recorded in Matthew 5–7, esp Matthew 6:25-34. These verses of Scripture aren’t just pithy pie-in-the-sky-and-by-and-by abstractions for some time in the far-off future; they serve as concrete reality to help us live in the Kingdom of God now… and later. They are a firm foundation, on which we can build what author Dallas Willard has referred as “a life that works.” As we progress in learning the Way of Jesus, we begin to realize that our desires have been misplaced and we start to refocus them. Jesus models a life characterized by an insatiable desire, not for abstractions but for the concrete reality of God. Jesus refuses to succumb to a futile and endless pursuit of abstractions like more, faster, better, and cheaper—where one never seems to have enough. Instead, we see Jesus relentlessly pursuing the things of God such as justice, mercy, kindness, faith, hope, and love—things that should never be in short supply in God’s Kingdom. And as we begin to learn the lesson that Jesus teaches, we too gradually shift from a relentless pursuit of unachievable abstractions to an attitude that is much more focused on having gratitude for and making the most of what I already have. We still have real needs in our lives to be sure, but we learn to trust God to provide for them in abundance and give us what we truly need. Gradually, we discover ways to “step off” the endless treadmill that has come to characterize modern life—both as individuals and communities. We rediscover the balance that we so desperately crave. We find the peace and joy that is often so elusive in our lives. We start to learn the secret that Jesus knew… and Paul knew… and many other followers of Christ have discovered through the centuries… I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through [Christ] who gives me strength. —Philippians 4:12-13 And this is not the kind of secret that you need to keep to yourself… In fact, once you know it you just have to share it. We forfeit so much peace and joy in our lives for lack of understanding this secret. I pray we’ll share the secret with others every chance we get, and as more and more of us do that, I pray it will change our lives, our homes, our churches, our communities, and our world for the better. 1Brian McLaren discusses this idea in his book Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crises, and a Revolution of Hope, Chapter 25. 2All four Gospel writers describe the feeding of the 5000, while Matthew and Mark include the feeding of the 4000, possibly because the audience in this second case was composed primarily of Gentiles making it distinct from the first account.
 Alan Ward lives in Baltimore, MD and his writing can be found at Alan's Corner. |
some of this extra busy-ness in those I know is due to the economy - in 2 ways.
1. they are working harder than ever to maintain their life - getting better stuff is not on their mind, just surviving is the goal. and ...
2. companies can take advantage of this economy and tell the employee to just be grateful they have a job, while slashing benefits and pay and increasing responsibilities.
it's a tough time. if a person can make the transition mentally to a simpler life with less stuff in it, they might make the transition. but if they are saddled with debt that claims every dollar they are making now, it's harder to make the transition.