Episode #405: Learning to Enjoy Life With God- Becoming Childlike

Hey, friends. I've been thinking lately about enjoyment and how God placed us on earth to enjoy His creation, and the difference between entertainment and enjoyment. I see this a lot in my own life. When I think about the things that I enjoy or I reflect on recent experiences that brought me delight or fun or play, I tend to think about things that were entertaining.

“Oh, that movie that we went to go see, or that family game night, or that big vacation that I'm looking forward to, or the way that I got to crash into the weekend and get rest.”

 But there's enjoyment that God has created for us and intended for us in everyday moments, too. And that enjoyment is beyond just entertainment. To notice His creation and participate in it. To feel the warmth of the sun on our faces. To imagine and play, to wonder, to go through life experiencing the vibrancy of it with all of our senses, including eating good food and smelling sweet aromas.

And I've been thinking about this in the context of being childlike and how as kids, we start being really good at play. You ask an adult what they have going on this weekend, our thoughts tend to go to either a really big event that's happening or a to-do list. "Oh, we gotta mow the lawn," or, "catch up on laundry," or, "get the groceries," or, "I'm repainting the living room." But kids, with their scope and awareness, they are thinking about how they could build a fort or the dragons that they want to draw, or to see if they can concoct this experiment to test how long a cardboard boat can actually float in the puddle that's outside.

There is so much that kids do that provides opportunities for enjoyment. And that shift comes because as adults, we have more responsibilities, right? But I've noticed that sometimes we can overemphasize what is useful and disregard what is playful or enjoyable. We can decide if something is worth our time and effort and energy by what it accomplished or what it produced.

But play operates by another economy. We do something because it's delightful.

You could make a really fast meal, or you could make one that takes longer time but is enjoyable to learn the new recipe or share that experience with your family. And both have their place. I'm not trying to discount that in any way. But in this vein of thought, I've also been thinking about how play can become receiving, how not every moment needs to be productive or efficient, which if you've been around the podcast for a little bit, you know those are like my favorite words. I'm always looking for how I can be more efficient and effective and productive. But sometimes enjoying what God has given is in it of itself a response to the giver.

Enjoyment can be a response to receive good from God.

I wanna read for us 1 Timothy 6:17, and it says, "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant, nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment."

Now, not everything in life comes from God. We live in a fallen world, and not everything in life is only for enjoyment. But He richly provides everything needed for our enjoyment of life and of life with Him. Sometimes delight is, in and of itself, enough reason to do something.

I find myself bumping up against this in different areas. Like I enjoy journaling by hand. I enjoy written notebooks and cute stickers that I can put in my planners. Is it more efficient to put stickers? Is it helpful? Does it make me more productive? No. But I enjoy the process of it.

So I've been thinking about this in the opportunities we have to be more childlike, to notice God's creation, to notice His presence with us, to take these moments in our days to enjoy, to relish and savor and celebrate.

And so here's a question that I wanna leave you with today to continue this conversation with God:

God, how are you inviting me to enjoy life with you?

And then walk in whatever He shows you.

Have a good talk.

And if you've been encouraged by this content, please share it with a friend and help them grow in their conversational relationship with God too!

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