Getting More and Doing More

In his book, Subversive Spirituality, Eugene Peterson writes, "Our culture has failed precisely because it is a secular culture. A secular culture is a culture reduced to thing and function. Typically, at the outset, people are delighted to find themselves living in such a culture. It is wonderful to have all these things coming our way, without having to worry about their nature or purpose. And it is wonderful to have this incredible freedom to do so much, without bothering about relationships or meaning. But after a few years of this, our delight diminishes as we find ourselves lonely among the things and bored with our freedom.

"Our first response is to get more of what brought us delight in the first place: acquire more things, generate more activity. Get more. Do more. After a few years of this, we are genuinely puzzled that we are not any better.

"We North Americans have been doing this for well over a century now, and we have succeeded in producing a culture that is reduced to thing and function. And we all seem to be surprised that this magnificent achievement of secularism--all these things! all these activities!-- has produced an epidemic of loneliness and boredom....

"And then, one by one, a few people begin to realize that getting more and doing more only makes the sickness worse...

"People begin to see that secularism marginalizes and eventually obliterates the two essentials of human fullness: intimacy and transcendence. Intimacy: we want to experience human love and trust and joy. Transcendence: we want to experience divine love and trust and joy. We are not ourselves by ourselves... Instead, we long for a human touch, for someone who knows our name. We hunger for divine meaning, someone who will bless us."

Maybe its middle age. Maybe its more than 30 years in ministry. But I'm even more committed to investing in intimacy and transcendence rather than getting more and doing more. I've seen what the sickness does to us, both in my own life and the lives of those with whom I have relationship. Anyone care to join me?