Those Annoying Character Developers

School has kept me busy as of late and car trouble and various odds and ends—those little annoyances, character developers, if you will. I have also been working on catching up with the blogs I have been reading and was encouraged and challenged by this post. I know it’s old, but it’s still good.

I need to do a better job of not letting the little things turn into big things. I need to take the focus off myself. I need to allow Christ to live in me each day in each situation. I’m not much on WWJD because most of the time that turns into what do we think Jesus would do based on our own preconceived notions. While principles can be mined from scriptures, Jesus did not live in the 21st century in Texas with my family or at my job. But, I can let the Holy Spirit work in me, trusting that He knows best in each situation and that whatever comes my way doesn’t have to affect how I treat others.

Going Home

As a man aches for his evening meal when all day long his brace of wine-dark oxen have dragged the bolted plowshare down a fallow field–how welcome the setting sun to him, the going home to supper, yes, though his knees buckle, struggling home at last.

Odysseus longed for home. Do I? Or am I too comfortable here, having someone to run my plow for me over soft, well tilled ground? 

Odysseus’ long hard day was drawing to a close, and despite his weakness and tiredness and temptation to just rest where he was, he knew that home was better.

I am lured by the pleasures of this culture to be content and not long for home. Don’t I have all I need? What could home offer beyond what I have here?

And that is the lie: the lie that has been told from the beginning. The lie that what hangs before my eyes, within my grasp, affords me a better life than what God has promised. I am no different than Eve or Adam, believing that shortcuts are best. Odysseus knew, however, that he belonged at home.

Just one more…

Steinbeck writes in The Pearl, “It is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more. And this is said in disparagement, whereas it is one of the greatest talents the species has and one that has made it superior to animals that are satisfied with what they have.”

My cat is eating right now, basically the same thing she always eats. She never complains, always excited about what is dropped in her bowl. Her only dissatisfaction comes from not being let outside early enough for her liking in the mornings. But she can’t do anything about it. While she may want more, she has no ability to open doors, and even if we never let her out, she would never figure out how to open doors. She may want more, but she can’t have it. 

People are different. They can work themselves out of a jam sometimes. They can figure out how to get more. And that is a curse and a blessing. It is a blessing because we have the capability to feed so many people (and their animals), to heal so many diseases, and to find new ways to love our neighbors. Yet it is a curse. We spend unknown millions frivolously because we are not satisfied. We want the latest gadget, the newest this, and the upgraded that. Once the barrier is broken, and we see beyond what we know, the horizon of want stretches on forever. And this dulls our love for others. The drone of commercialism drowns out contentment’s sighs. 

How do you handle the “just one more thing” of life? Do you feel the need to keep up with your neighbor or co-worker or classmate in the latest gadget or fad or style? What would it take for you to be content? Are you sure? Where does true contentment come from?