I Dare You (part 2)

Lent is always a sobering and funny thing to me. People give up some of the most interesting things. I often wonder about the motivations & really some times I could just point blank ask. Yesterday I talked about me giving up TV for Lent. To be honest I’m not sure what the motivation was the first time other than I remember being really challenged about how I used my time by Rob Bell’s Mastering the Art of Living series. Maybe that was it.

Lent is often just an exercise in self-control and it is a good one. It forces us to think about our habits and assess where our priorities lie. But there is a second part to Lent that is often neglected. Not only do we give up things that maybe have mastery over us or things that we are addicted to but we also look for new things to take up. What are good, noble, divine things we can take up to fill that time.

So part two of the challenge is simple: how can you better use the time that you were spending having your brain traumatized by the talking heads?

How can you bring love and healing to a person or situation, instead of useless banter about all that is wrong with someone or something else. Just find something to go fix. The only thing that is stopping the world from being different is you.

I’d love for us to use the comment section today for some ideas. Think about the places where you live, work and play. How can you use your time better in these locations? Maybe you just listen when you are driving…how can you better use your mental space in that time? Can you make a commitment to end the drama, the gossip, the bitter conversation, the belittling of a perceived enemy?

Two thoughts to go…

(repeat from yesterday) What you are inhaling you are exhaling on those around you…often on people that you say you love.

I think I could teach a whole series on the Where is the Love? (Black Eyed Peas) I’ve been thinking a lot about the line

“I think the whole world is addicted to the drama,
Only attracted to things that’ll bring you trauma.”

or this one

“Wrong information always shown by the media,
Negative images is the main criteria,
Infecting the young minds faster than bacteria”