Do you ever find yourself caught up in a pattern of pettiness or just plain meaningless conversations with people? It doesn't matter if it's friends, family, classmates, coworkers, etc....you have good conversations - but they just don't mean anything. I seem to be caught in such a rut. There are many people I speak with (especially during the work week) about a great many things. And that's all well and good, really. We need to create and maintain relationships and to do so means communicating with them. My problem is I get so caught up in the things of this world: sports, movies, life, family, work, etc, etc, etc. Again, all well and good. But when this is all I dwell on, well then there's a problem. Because then, I am wasting opportunities.
When we were in Ireland this summer, we had a few very meaningful conversations and some of the team were saying about how good it was to be around like-minded people and have good "meaty" (as in substantial) talks. I remember being a bit convicted about my lack of them back home, and then quickly dismissed it thinking that I would be bored after awhile if that's all we talked about. This is a perfect example of how my flesh takes over and throws out anything good. Bored, Kim? Really?? In having conversations about God and the kingdom and learning how to survive this world? Lord knows I need all the help I can get in that area (I'm not being disrespectful here - He does know!)
Last night we had a family dinner at my sister's house celebrating my brother as he is moving away in a few weeks. My siblings and I (and extended sibling haha) sat around a campfire and had a really meaningful conversation about ourselves, our experiences, what God is doing in our lives, and what we feel He is leading us to do. It was one of those moments seemingly frozen in time...where, for a few hours, we were edifying and being edified. It was sanctioned and beautiful. Corny as it may sound, that's how I felt about it.
So, as these things often do, it lead me to think about me and my life and my lack of "real" conversations and what I should do to change that. Don't get me wrong, the NFL is starting this week, the NHL is in threat of a lockout, I have to make my pool picks, and I still want to see the Dark Knight Rises. There are still awesome conversations to be had and they will happen. Just watch out, we will be praying for opportunities to share and glorify Jesus.
Try it out sometime...it may sound boring, but I can promise such conversations have the potential to change your life. Think about it.
