STARE CRAZY

Ephesians 2:6-10
6 God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

There's a new craze for bored bar patrons--staring contests. Yep, the thing you did as a kid in elementary school is back!

The ground rules are familiar: Two people stare into each other's eyes until someone blinks, looks away, talks, or smiles. One match participant described reaching 2 minutes in a match as the "Dry Eye Death Phase." (The American Academy of Ophthalmologists does
not recommend staring contests.)

Some matches last beyond a quarter of an hour. That sounds like something not only painful, but really, well . . . boring.

It's easy to poke fun at people involved in staring competitions(just don't poke them in the eye). It's hard, however, to look ourselves "in the eye" and ask what we're doing with our boredom.

Idle time can make for some poor decisions. If you're alone, it can be a time when temptation hits the hardest.

Likewise, if we're in a group and there's "nothing to do," the choices for attempting to cure the boring-bug can be poor. It's so easy to run out and pick up a nasty flick or engage in an activity that isn't good for our spiritual health. Instead, when boredom hits you, remember the following exciting realities:

You are precious to God: You are "God's workmanship"--literally, His work of art.

You have been created to do good works: God has prepared in advance the amazing things He wants you to do.

When we grasp these truths about our relationship with God, it can help us beat boredom. We recognize that just as we are precious to God, we have precious little time on this earth to serve Him. Motivation replaces stagnation as we seek to be used by Him to touch others' lives in positive ways.

Also, we will begin weeding out unfulfilling, ungodly activities from those we know will be "good works" in Jesus' eyes. And what about staring? Turn your eyes on Jesus! --Tom Felten

DESTINATION POINTS

* What have I been doing with my boredom?
* How does being God's work of art affect the way I use my idle moments?

bottom line: Being bored is not an excuse for bad behavior.

soul journey