Sensate and Spiritual

In a recent post on the topic of human boredom, Jeff Blazer proposes, "Humans are sensate, visceral, palpable. I believe that means life isn't really THAT philosophically abstract, rather more about how we feel in a given moment. If you don't get it or don't believe me, think of it this way: do we really care if god is good if we feel like shit? Get it now?" It's been awhile since I've taken issue with what someone else has blogged about, and I guess you could say that my boredom has driven me to it today. I'm certainly not arguing with Blazer's point that boredom is strictly human issue like rational thinking and addiction, nor am I arguing that most of what we do is designed to combat boredom, I do, however, take issue with the idea that life is all "about how we feel in a given a moment." I think it is certainly possible for us to make life all about how we feel in a given moment, but I do not think that is what life is meant to be or even how it has to be. In fact, I think we are the only species blessed with rational thinking so that we can overcome our natural drive to act and live on nothing more than how we feel. The Bible is clear that we cannot trust our feelings. Jesus states in Matthew 15:19, "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander." None of these are good, but they are what can develop in hearts that are left to themselves. If we always choose to make life about how we feel in a given moment, we will consistently act in ways detrimental to ourselves, to those in our immediate presence, and to society as a whole. Beyond that, we would render ourselves no greater than wild animals who are creatures of instinct rather than thought. Making our life's purpose a series of attempts to overome our natural state of boredom and believing that acting to appease our feelings is what life is all about makes us infants who haven't fully developed mentally, spiritually, or physically rather than mature adults capable of willing ourselves to do the right thing even if it's not what we feel like doing and to seek out ways to help each other rather than only helping ourselves.

Blazer's concluding question of "Do we really care if God is good if we feel like shit?" does not resonate with me. Actually, it's when I'm most depressed or uncomfortable that I most care about God's goodness. If I do not have the belief in God's goodness to hold fast to when I'm most miserable, I have no hope or reason for resolve. I am personally quite familiar with feeling crappy, and often the only thing that keeps me going during those times is faith in God's goodness and the conviction that His word is true. God promises me in Romans 8:28 that "in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (emphasis mine). Even when everything around me seems to be falling apart, I can trust in God's goodness and believe He will bring good out of even the most seemingly hopeless of circumstances. In bleak circumstances, I can look to His word in Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." God chose humankind to be the species entrusted with emotion, rational thinking, and the capacity to have a personal relationship with Him. With these capabilities comes a critical choice. We can choose either to be ruled by our feelings and let our lives be governed by seeking ways to fill the boredom, or we can choose the path of faith and let our lives be governed by a higher purpose and higher calling. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can become more than merely sensate, visceral, and palpable, we can become spiritual beings who are capable of enjoying the sensate, visceral, and palpable without living for those things.