All day Wednesday I struggled at work with boredom. It's not that I didn't have anything to do, it was that I didn't feel like doing anything. I was working from home, which is sometimes counterproductive. The house is too quiet and the climate control too comfortable for serious work. So my mind wandered and my body relaxed the more I slumped in my chair and stretched out my legs.
As soon as I went into work the next day I received an email titled: "Boredom at Work is Self Inflicted". It was from a daily devotional of a ministry called Work Life: http://www.worklife.org/
I felt like a complainer...and I was. It's absurd when you think about all the blessings and gifts and resources I've been given to provide for my family and live a comfortable life (comfortable in light of the world population, not necessarily middle or under middle class Americans). My current vocation does not line up with what I perceive to be my long-term vocational calling...so I often enjoy whining about it, which leads to boredom, self-loathing and apathy, instead of being thankful, which leads to praise, contentment and a gracious spirit.
What I was especially reminded of in all this was the power of the gospel, to redeem, transcend and inspire any given situation. Isn't that what makes the power of the gospel so great? The gospel is not controlled or produced by its context, but changes the lives of people within a given context in order for God's work to be made manifest in the world. It's a quiet power that moves in the hearts of men with indelible grace and strength.
Opening that email the other day was also a reminder of God's sense of humor in synchronicity, or 'an apparently meaningful coincidence.' I can't remember if I laughed or cussed, but the irony was wonderful. To receive that email, blasted out to thousands, the day after I struggled mightily with boredom, was, what I interpret as, God's providence. I don't look for 'synchronic signs' under every rock...but I know them when I see them.
May we all 'work as though working unto the Lord' (Col 3.22-24) and allow the peace of Christ to do the rest (Phil 4.4-7).
As soon as I went into work the next day I received an email titled: "Boredom at Work is Self Inflicted". It was from a daily devotional of a ministry called Work Life: http://www.worklife.org/
I felt like a complainer...and I was. It's absurd when you think about all the blessings and gifts and resources I've been given to provide for my family and live a comfortable life (comfortable in light of the world population, not necessarily middle or under middle class Americans). My current vocation does not line up with what I perceive to be my long-term vocational calling...so I often enjoy whining about it, which leads to boredom, self-loathing and apathy, instead of being thankful, which leads to praise, contentment and a gracious spirit.
What I was especially reminded of in all this was the power of the gospel, to redeem, transcend and inspire any given situation. Isn't that what makes the power of the gospel so great? The gospel is not controlled or produced by its context, but changes the lives of people within a given context in order for God's work to be made manifest in the world. It's a quiet power that moves in the hearts of men with indelible grace and strength.
Opening that email the other day was also a reminder of God's sense of humor in synchronicity, or 'an apparently meaningful coincidence.' I can't remember if I laughed or cussed, but the irony was wonderful. To receive that email, blasted out to thousands, the day after I struggled mightily with boredom, was, what I interpret as, God's providence. I don't look for 'synchronic signs' under every rock...but I know them when I see them.
May we all 'work as though working unto the Lord' (Col 3.22-24) and allow the peace of Christ to do the rest (Phil 4.4-7).
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