Desire Paths - Non-Essential Spending w/Pastor Jenn

Good morning, everyone. Good to see you all.

Well, I'll just start with this. One of my earliest

memories, so I moved here in 2001, and one of

my earliest memories of my young adulthood, so

I was 24 when I moved here, was my friend and

I would go to Borders pretty regularly. If anybody

knows what Borders is, it's a bookstore. And

it was up where, actually, is BAM still up there

right now? Okay, it was up where that is. So

we would go to Borders, and we would order coffee

and pull out, like, a ridiculous amount of magazines.

And we would just sit and read magazines for

a really long time. And one night, in real time,

we observed this situation. We were poor. We

were poor and we did not have a good practice

of consistently paying our bills and we had limited

income and so we were sitting in the cafe drinking

our coffee paid for with money that should have

been going to our electric bill and we noted

that that's exactly what was happening and we

laughed about it because we're like one day when

we thought we would be financially strong stable

we would look back at this incident as a part

of those formative memories that people have

for their young adulthood lives when they're

like forging their gritty way through young adulthood

and then we went back to our coffee and magazines

delighting in the fact that that was the truth

of the matter and the electric bill still wasn't

paid but we In that moment, we're escaping the

reality and enjoying our coffee and magazines.

And truly, as far as finding cheap activities

to do, that's a decent one. If you're looking

for something to do, you can look at magazines

and buy a coffee. But our observations of the

situation were notable, and the pattern was regular.

It wasn't like we were just observing a one -time

incident. This was recurring. So you make it

into young adulthood. bumpy years of learning

money management. And you may level up in your

work so that it becomes less critical for you

to figure out the intricacies of that because

you've got a good pad in there. Or like some

of the rest of us, we work in ministry. You don't

necessarily level up. You just enjoy your work

for life. Or for that matter, those who went

into teaching or nursing or social work, there

wasn't really a level up of, oh, now, now the

money is rolling in. This morning's message is

a part of our Desire Paths series. Desire Paths

are these. paths that can become ruts that we

have made where we most walk, where we spend

most of our time forging forward. And not just

us, but societies as well. These desire paths

are socially made, and there's a reason for that.

So today's focus is on... Those non -essential

spending points as well as entertainment. They

are not the same thing, but there is crossover

and there is connection. So that's where we're

going to spend our time. That's what we're going

to be looking at today. So non -essential spending,

that's the things that fall outside of your bills.

That's the coffee that you're buying when you

should be paying your electric bill. It's your

regular fees to keep the lights on, outside of

your regular fees to keep the lights on or the

food on the table, the car running, the people

healthy. It's the extras that you absolutely

could live without, but you enjoy them. And then

this can often be linked to entertainment of

various kinds. Entertainment doesn't always cost

money, but when it does, it falls under the non

-essential category. Whether a cost is attached

or it isn't. entertainment is typically understood

to be something that provides amusement or enjoyment.

And it comes in a variety, a myriad of forms.

A variety is a word that you say when you mean

variety and myriad. And so because it is the

season of Lent, each week we've discussed things

that when the relationship with them gains an

unbalanced priority in our lives, it requires

examination. So Lent is the 40 days leading up

to Easter where we re -enter the story of Christ's

life, willingly sacrificed for ours. It is, by

nature, meant to be a heavy event. There is nothing

lighthearted or explicitly uplifting in the narrative.

It is meant to be difficult, heartbreaking, dark,

and confronting. It is meant to be all the things

that we typically want to avoid, the things that

we want to escape. And we've become very good

at chasing and working hard to maintain a level

of happiness and lightness in our lives, or at

the very least, numb or disassociate ourselves

to the point that we no longer feel tied to the

things that I just mentioned a moment ago. Because

we've become very discomfort phobic. We don't

know how to deal with difficult things, with

hard things. And listen, I'm not saying that

we should like those things. They are a very

real part of life. But because we have gained...

A lot of things that help us walk away from our

discomfort or turn away from our discomfort,

our ability to engage with it has become small.

So the items we are talking about today, entertainment,

non -essential spending, they are overwhelmingly

the conduits through which we work to maintain

this distance from discomfort in our lives. Now,

there is a level at which entertainment is a

gift. And if you have income that can bring things

that are enjoyable to you, praise God, and that's

great. I'm not saying these things are bad. Comedy

relief during a hard time, it's wonderful. The

joy of looking forward to the Super Bowl party

with friends? That's a fun thing. The super fun

video you saw on social media that you want to

share with everyone because it's that good and

made you laugh that hard, wonderful. The new

shoes that you got that look so good, listen,

when I bought my green Adidas last year, two

years ago, I was doing something for my 12 -year

-old self when I bought those. And that is okay.

But as with anything that makes us feel good,

it doesn't take a whole lot to want us to twist

it and use it in a way that it does some major

heavy lifting in our lives for things we should

be dealing with ourselves and with God. We love

a good distraction. And so this is a moment to

add a full disclaimer. Entertainment is not bad.

Like I said, it can be joyful and fun, meaningful

and uniting. Listen, a few weeks ago, I made

a flash decision to see Billy Joel in Indianapolis,

which is five hours away. And that's not a problem

unless you try to do it in less than 20 hours.

So I drove five hours to Indianapolis, saw the

concert. Kathleen, where'd you go? Are you around?

Oh, there you are. I was actually working in

Indianapolis, so I got to pop over and see the

event that she was working with, which was super

fun. So we got to visit, and then I hopped in

the car, and I crawled my way back to the Quad

Cities. And I got here at 9 .15 and rolled right

up to the church. But listen, it was worth it.

And entertainment has uniting features to it,

right? I did not know. Guys, I didn't know. I

didn't know that singing Piano Man with 50 ,000

of my closest friends in a starlit room was on

my bucket list. I didn't know until it was happening.

And then I'm like, oh my gosh. Why didn't anybody

tell me? This is amazing. And none of us that

were in that room are going to forget that. And

so I spent some non -essential money to go see

that show because Billy Joel is 75. And I know

that I regretted not seeing Ray Charles when

he came through. And I didn't want to do that

again. So I went to go see him. And I do spend

money on concerts sometimes to go to be entertained.

It's a joy. And of course, I love music. And

so that's a joyful way for me to spend some time

and money. And so listen, this is not just me

justifying. The concert that I went to to be

like, so because I went to a concert, it's fine.

Everybody, it's fine. I do mean it. The things

that we're talking about in this series are not

bad things. However, they are things that can

easily become poorly and unhealthily prioritized

in our lives. And so it's easy for them to become

that because they make us feel a certain way.

And we like it. So they require examination and

perhaps a season away in order to find ourselves

realigned with them in our lives in a more sustainable,

happy way and realigned in a more purposeful

way to the things that have real meaning to us.

So Lent is a gift of the historic church that

teaches us to take some time to be quiet. truthful,

and reflective, uncomfortable even, in order

to reorient ourselves towards the story of Christ

in our lives. So let's pray together that this,

from here on out, that we would hear what God

has to say to us. Jesus, thank you so much for

the church historic and these points within the

church year that remind us of what we are a part

of. I'm grateful for the creativity of the seasons

of Lent and Advent and Ordinary Time and Pentecost

and Holy Week. And they are remarkable moments

that we get to relive year after year. Again,

to reorient ourselves honestly and truthfully

to the kingdom story and to your story, Christ.

And so with our time today. The topic here, for

those of us that it is an issue for, help us.

Lord, help us. Societally speaking, God, this

is a big issue in society. So God, help us in

our world, in our society. And just help us realign

ourselves with you. Open our hearts and search

them. We pray this in your name. Amen. So living

in America, we know that we love our entertainment.

We know it. And getting ourselves a little treat.

Who loves a little treat? Yeah, there we go.

I just want a little treat. I deserve a little

treat. Just a little treat. Every day. Five times

a day. I deserve it. I deserve a little treat.

A number of sources report that in 2022 and 2023,

the average American spent roughly... $3 ,500

to $3 ,700 on entertainment each year on average

at base level, which is just over $290 to $300

per month. Did we know that we had extra $300

a month in our pockets? I did not know. That

was news. I did not know. Entertainment may include

any number of things, such as going to the movies

as a family or seeing a concert. It can also

include less costly items, such as the money

you spend on your favorite game or app on your

device, the coffee you got while out running

errands or taking kids to activities. But it

certainly adds up a lot, a lot. And most Americans,

by contrast, do not have savings accounts or

emergency funds. But most Americans do spend

$3 ,500 a year. And they often do so while thinking

they don't have enough money. That's real. And

that's not a judgment. I'm saying that's the

truth of it. This is generally just the reality

of what we experience. Now, non -essential spending

and entertainment, like I said, aren't exclusively

linked. There's a lot of entertainment available

to us that is free. And you don't even need to

leave your house. Once upon a time, there's a...

a comedian content creator named Rashonda Elias

that she goes to the board to bring some truth.

And one of her things was, now, what we want

us all to know that has a chokehold on us is

outside. If you go outside, you are spending

money. Money is outside. And she wants to remind

us that outside is closed. Don't go outside.

Except that outsiders come in. And it is on my

phone. And I can push a button. So, yeah, you

don't even need to leave your house. You just

pick up that device and down the wormhole you

go, watching videos about a topic you did not

have an interest in five minutes ago, but now

it's the only thing you've ever cared about.

Please respect my life choices. I will be taking

no further questions. And so what we end up spending

often is not just our money, but it is our time.

We spend so much time. And we expend so much

energy. When we think we're going to entertainment

because we're tired, we don't realize how much

our entertainment is sucking from us. Time and

energy. And I get it, sometimes we need a portal

out. We are in something that is difficult at

a very real level, and we just need a window

out. Entertainment provides that. I haven't been

diagnosed with ADHD, but my life makes... No

sense if I don't have it. So a quiet mind is

not something I understand. I wake up with 10

raging thoughts in my head at minimum. And about

five require further research for the questions

they are bringing up. Entertainment, specifically,

I end up on social media because it quiets my

brain. And it puts my busy mind on hold. And

if you live a life where your resources are always,

in another scenario, if you live a life where

your resources are always going out towards others'

needs, buying something just for yourself or

a night out with a partner feels vital. There

are reasons that we find our ways to these places,

but at their very core, whether or not they can

provide momentary care and relief and even something

good, they are ultimately pathways of distraction,

escape. or disassociation. And it's okay to be

truthful about that. It's okay to say, I'm actually

escaping right now. I'm actually looking for

a little relief. I think where we will benefit

is if we just say it. Because that is exactly

what's happening. And again, not all escape in

those moments is bad. Sometimes you do need a

window out. Sometimes you need a moment out.

But again, we need to be honest about that stuff.

So at their very core, That is what is happening.

They are pathways of distraction, escape, or

disassociation. And the society we live in, y

'all, the society we live in is structured in

a way that lives are being built on these things.

We have to rage against it if you want to live

another way. You want to not be on social media?

People don't understand. You want to not give

your kids cell phones until they're older teens?

People do not understand. You want to not do

something, see something, engage in something

that is highly popular in the world of pedal

distraction? People do not understand. The thing

is, we all know that this tension exists. We

all know where those tension points lie. We all

know. what is being desired of us by an entertainment

-based and easy -spending society. And we all

know what it feels like to either say no to it

or not engage in it to the degree others do.

So not only is the distraction there and easy,

but if you try to pull away from it, there's

a tension on the other side. Because when we

do that, when we do say no, it disrupts the status

quo. And that means something harder. That we

may not have the time or energy to engage in

because we've already spent it. We disrupt a

status quo and we know that the others around

us then feel judged. We've experienced that.

We know that when the outside boundaries of this

structure, or we know where the outside boundaries

of this structure are. We do. We all know. We

all know. And when we choose to pull away from

it. So what has happened when somebody has said,

oh, I saw this thing on Facebook, and you say,

I don't have Facebook. We all know. Somebody

on that other side of that conversation is like,

oh, you don't have Facebook? You're great. There's

this perceived judgment that exists. Oh, you

don't do that? Okay. Fine. Nice for you. If you're

telling me about something you saw, well, I was

going to say on X, right? Like that used to be

like the universal neutral symbol of something

that you could say, someone's X or whatever.

But now I can't say if you saw something on X,

meaning like a neutral social media platform

because X is a real thing. Yeah. If I say, did

you see this? And you say, I don't have that.

Like we feel that tension. Because we all know

our society is structured on this stuff. And

because our society is structured on it, our

brains and our lives and our time are all being

restructured around it. Our attention spans and

addictions to dopamine and serotonin boosts require

that even tools meant to be instructional or

informative have had to become entertaining.

Who uses Duolingo? Raise your hands. I know you're

doing it. And great, like I love it. You're trying

to learn something new. That's cool. What a great

thing to do, to learn something new. But Duolingo

had to make their app entertaining. It had to

input in it dopamine boosts, the little ding.

When you get something right. Even our news has

had to become entertaining. Because it is how

people will watch it. We are being altered. Are

we being altered towards something better? I

think we all agree, no. I don't even have to

ask hypothetically. So Lent is saying no. Lent

is resistance. So my advice when it comes to

non -essential spending is always books, which

can sound very academic and, oh, that's fine.

There's always a way to justify getting a book.

Unless you don't have the money for the book

or the coffee, because you've got to pay your

electric bill. But I, man, so I was walking through

the airport a few weeks ago, and I saw a book.

Because, guys, airport bookstores. Do you know

what I'm talking about? Thank you. It's so good.

Anyway, this book, because it's very bright,

stood out to me. It was in the front. But I'm

thrilled I bought it. It is an excellent book.

Omar Al -Akkad has something to say about resistance

in this book, and I'll leave it up here so you

can take a look. He has a chapter on leave -taking,

simply saying no. He talks about negative resistance.

So positive resistance is when you go to something.

Negative resistance is when you pull away from

something. We all know the power of a boycott.

So structures and marketing in society is set

up. On the understood social experience that

people, when you feed them enough of the same

thing over and over, will cave and say yes to

it. Enough targeted ads based on your algorithm

will undoubtedly result in your inevitable purchase

of the thing or the subscription or the download

or the ticket purchased or, or, or, or. In a

capitalist society, neutrally stated, we need

to understand that we are simply entities of

consumption and are treated as such in order

to keep the structure going. You need consumers.

So what happens when the consumer says, I opt

out. No, thank you. I choose not to participate.

Disengagement, reflection, reorientation. Lent

helps us return to a pace and a self that we

were designed to be. Because the world is not

that. We belong, though, to a kingdom where things

are very different. Our world has many things

that leave us overwhelmed. It can be a very noisy

place. And if your brain is always noisy and

the world is always noisy, you want to run away

from that. I hate how reachable we all are. I

hate that you can text me and message me and

this and this and this and this and this and

this. And we're all expected to respond at all

points of time. That is 100 % unsustainable.

We utilize entertainment and spending as a way

to escape. But where are we, if we're escaping

from, where are we going to? And that's the part

we don't think about. We just think about, I

just need to get away. But what are we moving

towards? Joshua Johnson is a comedian and social

commentary who's really funny and really sharp.

He said as a part of a broader, like this really

good segment he did, one of his stand -up routines,

as a part of a broader segment, entertainment

will never be your salvation. Entertainment,

by and large, is escapism. And no one has ever

escaped their chains by forgetting they were

there. No one has ever escaped their chains by

forgetting that they were there. You will not

be saved through entertainment. At the core of

the word translated as repentance in scripture

is the idea of a turning away. But in a turning

away from, it indicates that there must be a

turning. So in reorientation, in turning away,

we see that, in fact, there is a place we can

turn to. Because there has been an invitation

offered. We've been invited to something. We

are being invited to the kingdom. We are being

invited to full life in Christ. Amazing. So I

want to read from Luke 14, chapters, not chapters,

chapter 14, verses 15 through 24, although I'm

going to read a little bit at the start of it

too. So if you want to join me in this, you have

Bibles on your table, they are on your phone.

I think this is the NIV version. I will invite

us to stand as we are able to take a posture

of attention with the scriptures. And so I'm

going to read Luke 14. I'm going to start, I'm

going to read verse 1 to give context, and then

actually I will start at 12 from there. So one

Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house

of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully

watched. Verse 12, then Jesus said to his host,

when you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite

your friends, your brothers or your sisters,

your relatives or your rich neighbors. If you

do, they may invite you back and so you will

be repaid. So the idea is don't do something

because you know it's coming back to you. But

when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the

crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be

blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you

will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.

Verse 15, when one of those at the table with

him heard this, he said to Jesus, blessed is

the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom

of God. And Jesus replied, a certain man was

preparing a great banquet, invited many guests.

At the time of the banquet, he sent his servant

to tell those who had been invited, come, for

everything is now ready. But they all alike began

to make excuses. The first said, I have just

bought a field and I must go and see it. Please

excuse me. And another said, I have just bought

five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them

out. Please excuse me. And still another said,

I just got married, so I cannot come. And the

servant came back and reported this to his master,

and then the owner of the house became very angry

and ordered his servant go out quickly into the

streets and alleys of the town and bring in the

poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.

Sir, the servant said, what you ordered has been

done, but there is still room. And then the master

told his servant, go out to the roads and the

country lanes and compel them to come so that

my house will be full. I tell you, not one of

those who were invited will get a taste of my

banquet. He's talking about the previous people

that said no. And he wasn't being petty. He was

just saying they said no to the invitation. They

don't know what they're missing. You may be seated.

If I were to recontextualize this a little bit.

I might say Jesus replied, a certain man was

preparing a great banquet and invited many guests,

and at the time of the banquet he sent his servant

to tell those who had been invited, come, for

everything is now ready. But they all alike began

to make excuses, and the first said, I have to

scroll social media for a while. And another

said, I have to go to the store. I have people

coming over. And still another said, I've got

a concert to go to. I have a football game to

watch. I have a thing. I have a thing. And so

the servant came back and reported this to the

master. And the things that these invited guests

were doing were not bad. In fact, they felt important

to those people, but in light of the invitation,

they chose the wrong priority. Not seeing the

invitation for what it was. Not knowing that

they had been invited to something amazing. And

they couldn't recognize it. And so they missed

out. I asked God for some guiding scriptures

for me during Lent while preparing this message.

Social media is absolutely where I spend too

much time. It is too easy. Like I said, it quiets

my brain down. And that's a terrible reason to

use it. So I get sucked in very easily. And that's

what it's designed to do, right? It's designed

to pull you in. Anything that is entertainment

-based is designed to get you coming back. You

are simply the consumer. And you prop up the

system by consuming. So I have a few weeks left.

I can knock off of social media. I don't want

to, which is an indication. That I should. I

don't need it to live. It's not essential. And

I absolutely know I will have a clearer mind

when I go back if I choose to. It will be better

for me if I say no to it. But again, a moment

to pause and reflect and to be truthful about

it tells me all I need to know. So I asked God

to give me some places to direct my thoughts,

places to recognize I was being invited to. Reminders,

and these came to mind the quickest. God said,

be still. Psalm 46 .10, be still and know that

I am God. I am invited to be still, and I believe

that if God has invited me to be still and to

know that he is God, this busy mind of mine is

able to be cared for. The phrase, think on these

things, came to mind, which is from Philippians

4, 4 through 9. Rejoice in the Lord always. I

will say it again. Rejoice. Let your gentleness

be evident to all. The Lord is near. Don't be

anxious about anything, but in every situation,

by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present

your request to God, and the peace of God, which

transcends all understanding, will guard your

hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. And finally,

brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever

is noble, whatever is right and pure, whatever

is lovely and admirable, if anything is excellent

or praiseworthy, think about these things. Whatever

you have learned or received or heard from me

or seen in me, put it into practice and the God

of peace will be with you. I've been invited

to this. I've been invited to set my mind on

things above. Colossians 3, 1 and 2 says, Since

then you have been raised with Christ. Set your

hearts on things above where Christ is, seated

at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the

things above, not on the earthly things. And

I was reminded that I'm invited to do all things

for the glory of God, so whatever you do. Whether

you eat or whether you drink or whatever you

do, do it all for the glory of God. Listen, it's

hard to sit and scroll for hours and feel like

you're really dedicating your time to the kingdom

and seeing it as good, that you're doing it for

the glory of God. It's a good delusion, though,

if that's what you're looking for. But it's really

hard to justify that. And so these were things

that I was glad that I was thankful that God

reminded me of. Reminded me that I'm invited

to. And I know that there are things that I love

outside of these, outside of these moments of

my own escapism. And so it just got me thinking

about some good practices to keep in mind. I'm

going to put out a few of them, and some of them

may resonate with you, and for some of you, you

may jump off and think of some others. But the

first one that I thought of was... Related to

Psalm 139, ask God to search your heart. It's

a good place to start. Psalm 139, 23 and 24 says,

search me, God, and know my heart. And test me

and know my anxious thoughts. See if there's

any offensive way in me and lead me in the way

everlasting. Gosh, that's a better place to be.

It's a place that's sustainable and everlasting.

That's good. That's a place I want to be. So

God, search my heart and help me see things clearly

and truthfully. Help me reorient myself towards

the kingdom. In general, we're talking about

fasting from, you know, non -essential spending

and entertainment. I mean, just in general, whether

it's Lent or not, that's a good fast to practice.

Just stepping away. We all know what it does

to us. It's not good. It's not making any of

us better, right, as a whole. Again. You can

use it informatively, but just be aware of what

it's doing to you. We know that it's changing

young people. We know that now. That's not a

theory. It's proven. And so on top of that, adults,

it's also changing us. Take a look at your bank

account and see how much you spend on certain

things. That's useful. You probably all... have

seen on your online banking, there's a little

pie chart available that shows you your percentage

of spending. That's a useful thing to just take

a look at because money is pretty abstract to

us now. We don't do a lot of cash in hand. And

so money has taken on a very abstract existence

to us. And we don't see the money diminishing.

And so... Keeping an eye on that might lead you

to a budget, which could be really helpful. Because

then you, again, the nonessential spending, it's

not a bad thing to do, but at least know where

it's going and how you're using it. And reorient

it. Reorient your money spending towards the

kingdom, towards God, towards the glory of God.

Again, in an Amazon world, it's very easy just

to hit and click and see something show up at

your door. It's a dopamine boost, isn't it? Try

boredom, everyone. Try boredom. Boredom is a

gift, and I haven't experienced real boredom

in a long time. I have a lot of jobs, so that's

one reason, but I can stop boredom anytime I

want by picking this up. So boredom is really

good, and we've forgotten. Or we didn't learn

how to be bored. It is noted that Gen X is the

last generation to know what true boredom is.

Raise your hand if you're Gen X or older. We

are the last of it. Yeah, the last of the feral

children, that's right. What did your parents

say when you inevitably whined this sentence

out? I'm bored. Read a book? What? I'm dad. Go

outside. Go outside. Go play. Find something

to play with. Or they would say, how many toys

do you have upstairs? Did you forget? No parent.

No parent of our generation said, let me play

with you kids. That sounds terrible. But it's

really true. They were like, go outside. Find

your friends. I'm not your solution. Yes. And

so be bored. Boredom is such a good thing to

cultivate and to figure out how to respond to.

It creates opportunities for thinking and creativity

and self -confrontation and reflection. The best

things come out of boredom. And then don't do

something as a reaction or don't do things as

a reaction and, like, you know, I talked about,

like, the turning away from, okay, I'm not going

to do this anymore, but what are you going to?

Know what you're going to. We talked about the

kingdom, and the kingdom is... full of life and

it is a different way of living. And I also know

that in terms of resistance, there are other

life -giving things that we can engage in that

are in alignment with the kingdom. I'm reminded

of this quite often when I travel. I work overseas

quite a bit and it gives me an opportunity to

leave the American structure, which I'm grateful

to get to learn from other places. So I was in

Spain a week ago, and I was reminded of the importance

to many places in the world of the daily walk.

America is very fitness -focused, and so if we

see people walking, they're doing it for fitness.

It's objective. Whereas other places aren't thinking

that objectively about things like a walk. They

just have it as an integrated part of the day.

You get outside, touch grass, feel the sun, or

in our case, in the Midwest winter, feel the

blisteringly cold Arctic wind on your face. Be

refreshed. But do something intentional. Go to

an art gallery. Go to a library. Go to a public

speaking event. Go to your friends. Go to the

park. Go to camping. Go to something versus trying

to escape something else. Be really intentional

about that. Big or small. And it is a good idea

to have a list of those things because when you

are bored and feeling like you want to escape,

you will just escape unless you have a plan.

And so make a plan. Make a thing that you do.

Once you did something and you enjoyed it, write

it down. And remember, I liked doing that. I

want to do it again. I want to build a practice

of this. So you got to make a plan for it because

otherwise we will just find the entertainment

that we always find. We will just go do the thing

that we always did because when we feel overwhelmed

or like we need to escape or step away, we will

do the thing we always did. So make a plan. And

then along with the boredom thought, stay with

your thoughts longer than it's comfortable. This

is where we discover the ability to change. This

is where change occurs. Stay with your thoughts

longer than it is comfortable staying with them.

I want to be aware. Sometimes our thoughts get

really dark. And I want to actually acknowledge

that there are real places that that is not helpful

for us, to stay with them too long. then I encourage

you to go to something that will help you. Again,

find the friends. If you are finding your thoughts

are very dark and you need professional help,

go to that. Or go to the friends that can help

you get to that stuff. But again, be purposeful

about what you go to. So anyway, these are the

thoughts on the non -essentials, on the entertainment.

It might be helpful just to make a list of where

you... Where you find your entertainment. Much

like your bank account has the pie chart of the

money that you spent. It's useful to make a pie

chart of the time that you spent, too. To be

able to honestly reflect on it. And then as you're

thinking about what you're escaping from and

how you are using tools to escape, what are you

going to as you turn away? So let's pray. Thank

you, God, for your... Truth, thank you, God,

for your reminders. Thank you for bringing those

scriptures to mind when I asked you for words

of encouragement and things to move towards.

And I would ask that you would do that for all

of us here today. And we take some time to ask

God what I can move towards, good reminders of

things to reflect on as this season of Lent is

here. And if there's anything in these last few

weeks as we lead up to Easter, if there's anything

that we should turn away from, So that we can

reorient ourselves towards you in this story

of Easter and the truth of Easter. Would you

put that on our hearts and make that clear to

us so that we can respond to that? We want to

be a church that looks towards your kingdom.

We want to be a church that looks towards you.

And we want to be a people that resist. We want

to be a people that resist and say no thank you

to the things that are demanding our attention

and pulling us in other ways. We want to be people

that resist the common and the status quo so

that your kingdom may be alive in us fully. We

want to be a people that when somebody says,

oh, you don't do that, we say, no, but I have

other things. I'd like to invite you to it, too.

We become invitational about the kingdom as well

to help others know that they can turn away from

the things that bind them, the chains that they

don't see because they're overlooking them. We

pray that you free us from everything that holds

us and that as we are in this season of Lent,

we continue to look towards the freedom that

is ahead of us because of your sacrifice for

us, God. I pray this in your name. Amen.