God has created us all with a dream, but a dream for what? If we are on a time continuum, which we are, then where are we right now? Are we at the opening gates, crossing the finish line, or coming around turn three? How many turns are left and how many bumps until the tires fall off?
I am thankful for times of reflection. There is so much that passes us by. We don’t even recognize most of what is happening in the world around us and then we complain about being bored. I live in Newaygo, Michigan. This is not the most happening place on the face of the planet. Even for those who live in Michigan few would be able to pinpoint its location. I am 23 years old and have recently become an associate worship pastor. I have complained of being bored and not having anything to do but I couldn’t tell you the names of three people in my apartment complex. I have lived around these people for close to eight months and I can’t even tell you a first name. I live above a nun, that’s about all I can tell you. I can tell you that I left a pumpkin outside too long and its guts spilled onto her deck. I can tell you that I have a date with that deck and will be scrubbing it as soon as the weather lets up. I find this whole phenomenon very sad. I have let 8 months go by and have said that I don’t have anything to do. What else have I missed? How many hurt people have I walked right past? I find this incredibly disturbing but what about the “simple pleasures” that everyone talks about. Does anyone really understand fully what a simple pleasure is? I find a simple pleasure in this cup of Columbian coffee that I am sipping on, the cup of Italian before that, and the cup of Raspberry Chocolate before that, but what is pleasure? Mr. Webster says that a pleasure is “the state or feeling of being pleased.” Well that’s helpful. Maybe we can find something a little more insightful. Maybe this is a simple pleasure, finding a definition for a word that doesn’t help at all. The second definition sheds a bit more light on what pleasure is, “A source of enjoyment or delight.” Ok, let’s make sure we understand this together. Pleasure is a source of enjoyment, and what I enjoy may be different from what you enjoy, therefore pleasure is completely objective. Simple is something that is not complex, profound huh? So a non-complex source of delight can be just about anything, for me it is a cup of coffee. I also find nature to bring me delight. Nature is not simple though. What can we call a complex source of delight? We could be boring and just say they are complex pleasures. One word that means the same thing as complex is confused. Are things, like nature, nothing more than a confused pleasure? I am now intrigued by the fact that we are to enjoy life’s simple pleasures but not pointed to the confused ones. Isn’t Christianity one of life’s confused pleasures? We have new denominations springing up every day and yet people don’t admit to the fact that Christianity is confused. God is steady and consistent, as everyone will admit but Christianity? I conclude that Christianity is a confused pleasure and that it is one that I am exploring daily. Oh, and I just now finished up a final cup of Italian, I can’t wait to visit that place.
