Friday, February 09, 2007
Thought from a land far, far away (England)
So Janine Morgan, on of our professors here, has been introducing an idea that has really stuck with me. The existential void. That space that is empty in life. The time between class and finding someone to eat with. The blank pause which hovers in the air between the end of work and going to sleep. The moments you feel alone. Don't you feel it? What are we doing then? Are we filling it with filling-less things? Have you ever thought of facebook and email, t.v. and food as not just wastes of time, but ways of avoiding the feeling of emptiness in this 'void'? That the feeling of desperation to find someone to be with, something to do, is trying to fill up the space? Does anyone else feel this? Maybe this is nothing new to anyone else reading this, but I'd never really been aware of it quite so specifically. Everytime I am in-between activities, I am now aware of the void; it has been named. Janine was prompting us to fill the void with what truely fills. What would happen if everytime we bump into the void we met with God? Hmm...
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4 comments:
Hmm. I like that the first comment on this very important topic is... SPAM!!!!
Okay, but seriously, I know exactly what you're talking about, Mel. I spend a lot of time every day trying to fill the void because I'm afraid of what will be waiting for me if I allow myself to have any time to just sit and think. I don't really like being inside my head. But I do think, and I have been trying to do this, that maybe the existential void, as you put it, is a time that was made for God. You know? What purpose does it serve if not giving us time to meet with our creator and just be. I dunno. Actually, that thought is kinda scary to me to. Just being alone with God. But I do think it's important.
So I'm not sure what exactly I just said, but I hope you guys can extract something from the rambling. Thanks, Mel.
I would like to say that Janine Morgan is really great. I wish everyone in the world could take her Christian Worship class. Yes, everyone in the entire world. I think the amazing thing about the 'existential void' (cue twilight zone music) is that not filling it with other things and instead being with your Creator works. I've found that it's hard to do, but now that It Has Been Named it's easier to recognize and fix. I'd also like to say that Janine and Richard Foster, author of Prayer, are doing a lot to disassemble my confusion and frustration with prayer. Since those of you who aren't Melanie can't take Janine's class, you should all read Prayer by Richard Foster. I like it. : )
Also, Melanie, I think this is kind of strange because we're sitting in the same room and we've talked about this some. How great would it be to meet God without fear everytime we 'bump into the void?' He already knows we're avoiding it. He knows it better than we do. Good grief. I think the more I recognize that God gets all of my horrid bits the more comfortable I feel. This is somewhat contrary to what I generally feel when thinking about God knowing my faults. Hmmm... intriguing.
So I had another thought I thought I would add to the fray. Multi-tasking. Emailing while eating, while watching T.V. Talking on the phone, while instant messaging, while doing homework. Do you think that perhaps the reason we attempt to do so many things at once is because each of these things is inherently lacking? Do we unconsciously think that if we throw enough unsubstantial stuff together, we will somehow wind up with a filling concoction?
oh...and that anonymous person was me, melanie. I don't know what happenned there.
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