Trivial Pursuits:
A. If Alexander Graham Bell had, had his way with how we should answer a telephone what response would we be using?
(1) Ahoy (2) G-Day (3) Hello (4) Speak to me
B. All over Los Angeles there are hollow shell buildings that are concealing what?
(1) Rocket Silos (2) Oil Rigs (3)Service Tunnels (4) Telescopes
C. when you are up to “Shenanigans” what are you like?
(1)a Monkey (2) the Norse god Loki (3) a Fox (4) a Leprechaun. (answers are fond at the end of this article.)
Much of what we do in life is trivial. We put too much emphasis on things that don’t matter and too little emphasis on the things that do. Our society, in its wisdom, has chosen to continually magnify the significant to a level of importance.
foolishness has gripped our land. Reality TV is a perfect example. Most programs do nothing but glorify the mundane, silly and vulgar things in life. The Internet is as wasteful as it is useful. Unfortunately, it is used as often to elevate the ridiculous to fame (i.e. Grumpy Cat) and anonymously bully individuals simply because they are targets of opportunity. Cellphones have reduced our attention spans, our patience and our language to a series of misspelled and abbreviated acronyms. We are obsessed with ourselves and from God’s point of view; that is a trivial pursuit. You and I are wasting the most precious resource on earth, our TIME – on meaningless things that have no real value on earth and eternal value in heaven. Let’s do something of value.
Valentine’s Day (a “Hallmark” holiday) is upon us and I would like for us to refocus on the important things in life, rather than the trivial pursuits of life. What if this Valentine’s Day we focus our attentions on practicing loving God and loving others? It really is very simple because to love God is to praise loving others. Let me share a true story about Jeff. Jeff is a school teacher and a comic book aficionado. Before he was married he would make weekly treks to the comic book store in order to procure the most recent editions. As a believer he decided that it was important to bless others so he decided that he was going to make a point of complimenting or saying something nice everyone he came in contact with on a daily basis and he still does to this day. On his weekly trip to the comic book store he purposefully mentioned to the girl at the cash register that the color purple looked very nice on her. On his next visit to the store that girl put a note in his bag with his purchase stating that she greatly appreciated his kind words and said that they meant a great deal to her. She also asked if he would return after dinner to the store. Jeff did not know what he may have gotten himself into and did not know what to expect but returned to the store as requested.
The girl then shared with him the magnitude of his gesture. Her psychiatrist had told her as a part of her therapy that she should share with Jeff about the impact his words made in her life. On the day that Jeff complimented her she had decided that morning that she would kill herself if no one made a kind comment or gesture directed specifically to her. Jeff made his comment and it was what she needed to prevent her from taking her own life.
What you do and what you say has an impact on other. Jeff by deicing to demonstrate love, in a very simple way, helped this young lady. God requires more than knowledge about Him, He requires us to practice what we know. Let’s seek God’s affirmation this Valentine’s Day, who knows what lives might be changed? Let our pursuits in life not become trivial. Let’s make a difference.
Your Pastor Dave
Answers as promised A. (1); B. (2); C. (3)