We all think. Rarely, if ever, are our minds empty of thought. Most of my day at work my thoughts consist of "how in the world am I going to get these kids to pass the SOL test at the end of the year" and "were these kids raised by wolves?" To tell you the truth, most of my thoughts are reactions to immediate events. I get to work 2 hours before I have to so I can have some time to think ahead. When I go home I try very hard not to think about work. When I began watching the TV show, The Walking Dead, I watched 3-4 episodes at a time so I could catch up before season 4 started. I thought of how I would survive, ways to stay quiet, and of zombies in the woods of the neighborhood. It seriously took up quite a bit of my thoughts. When I read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire I thought of the world now and how easily it could become that world and again, what would I do. And when I read the Twilight series, don't judge, I am not ashamed, I thought long hours of what it would be like to be immortal and gifted and why that is so appealing to us as mere humans. Needless to say, what I read and watch dictates the majority of my free thinking time. Is this the same for others?
The last two months or so I have been thinking of what should I be doing with my life? Should I be doing more? What is missing? It's not that these thoughts consumed me, it started as little nudges. After the women's conference with Jen Hatmaker and reading her book Interrupted they are a little more consuming. Okay, I go to sleep thinking about it, I wake up thinking about it, I shower thinking about it, I drive thinking about it. When I'm not thinking about it, I am thinking that I may be over thinking about it. You may think, good grief, why are you thinking the same thing all the time. Let me tell you, I'm not! There are plenty of things to think about in this context. Things to think, imagine, dream, freak yourself out about.... The more I dive in the more things there are to think about. And I am diving in. I am reading, contacting, researching, and praying for direction. I should be praying for more, but my mom always said to be careful what I pray for, I just might get it. I'll get there.
I finished Interrupted. I want to call Jen Hatmaker up and declare my desire to move next door to her and be her best friend so she can step on my toes some more. Perhaps that's why she doesn't include her phone number in her books. Really though, I want her to speak to the leaders of where I go to church (but she just announced she's taking two years off from traveling and speaking, sigh). I have always thought the church wasn't all it could/should be. I just couldn't put my finger on it. Now I see why. I am a post-modern that grew up in a modern church. Read Interrupted, the chapters titled A Modern Mess, "Turn and Face the Strain, Ch-Ch-Changes," and Mission Possible for a wonderful take on why this modern/post modern thing makes such a big difference. (Read the rest of the book, too.)
I have just started Shane Claiborne's book The Irresistible Revolution. I can already tell this book is going to challenge me even more. He talks a little politics, and I am passionate about my politics! I have a feeling a few of my coming posts will have some sort of discussion about the book.
I leave you with a quote from Interrupted and a question.
"I've met Jesus at the bottom far more than I ever communed with him at the top." ~ Jen Hatmaker
What consumes your thoughts right now?
Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. James 1:27
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