Our Father’s Lap
As a Christian, I often find myself getting weighed down not just by the cares of the world but also by the joys of the world. Wait, what? How can you be weighed down by joy? Doesn’t that seem counter-intuitive?
There are two kinds of joys in my life, the first comes from enjoying the things of this world; a good meal, a funny movie, a peaceful hike, a close football game. The second comes from the light of Christ within, from that intimacy with God the Father and Jesus Christ, the fruit of the Holy Spirit. While the former things are not bad things by any stretch of the imagination, they are however temporal things. Temporal things are those which will eventually come to an end. A good meal lasts a couple of hours at most, a good film the same. A peaceful hike can last longer, but eventually I will get tired and need to stop for rest or return home. Even spending time with family and friends comes to an (often bittersweet) end as friends move away or loved ones pass on.
The latter joy is one that does not end, and although it is ever-present, it can wane the further we get from God. I liken it to a campfire: unless you are close to it, its heat cannot warm you. Yet this joy that comes from God is a much greater joy and eclipses the lesser enjoyment of things temporary, and as we draw closer to God that revelation becomes increasingly evident. This greater, eternal joy permeates the lives of those who become filled by it, and it touches the lives of everyone who comes in contact with it. Attaining this joy in our lives requires certain sacrifices from us, often those come in the form of temporal enjoyments that we set aside in order to draw closer to our Father.
The ultimate case study in the pursuit of temporal enjoyment can be found in the book of Ecclesiastes, where King Solomon comes to the conclusion that all the world has to offer is vanity. Even in popular culture we recognize that emptiness that resides below a shallow vernier of happiness. One company even coined the term “show hole” as a dark, empty place that one finds themselves in after binge-watching their favorite show to its conclusion. There is always a bittersweet emptiness that comes at the end of all temporal joys. That last bite of filet mignon, that last embrace from a good friend before they get on the airplane to fly home, that sudden onset of depression on Sunday night when you realize that your weekend is finally over.
This greater, eternal joy permeates the lives of those who become filled by it, and it touches the lives of everyone who comes in contact with it
When I find myself feeling that bittersweet end to some passing joy, I feel my soul weighed down by its lack, and that is when I realize that there is something missing there which I desperately need, my Heavenly Father. God says that the Spirit that He placed within us “yearns jealously” (James 4:5). James warns us against worldliness, and I think that too often the harsh tones of this passage are interpreted in very black and white terms; worldliness equals sin, friendliness with the world makes you an enemy of God. Should we then be unfriendly towards the world? Heavens, no! Rather, these are comparative terms, but also illustrate a dynamic that is at play which is not necessarily a struggle between good and evil, but between the temporary and the eternal. God longs for a relationship with us, and when we choose to fill our lives with temporal joys and entertain ourselves with worldly entertainment, we miss out on building that relationship with Him.
My son is five and has already mastered his tablet, which is pre-loaded with games and kids’ shows that we have approved for him. He derives a great deal of joy from putting on his headphones and playing on it. I get it. We are just as guilty of being attached to our cell phones or the television. But as I sit there watching him play, I begin to jealously long for him to come spend time with me instead, knowing that his childhood will pass by in the blink of an eye. Eventually, he becomes bored and sets aside his plaything, comes over to me and crawls up into my lap to spend time with me. It warms my heart and reminds me that I too need to set aside my playthings and crawl up into my Father’s lap and get to know Him. There, I find a lasting joy.
