And so I thought this week it would be good to dive into a talk about boredom. I couldn't really find any good Bible stories about boredom. Although, I do think Noah and his family must have gotten bored on the ark! Did you know they were on the ark for almost a year? It only rained for forty days and forty nights, but it took a long, long time for the water to go down so they could leave the boat. A year is a long time to be on a boat with just your family and a bunch of animals! How long do you think it took for the animals to become boring to Noah? It probably took a little while, but I bet even Noah got bored with the animals.
All of us get bored sometimes--even grown-ups! I get bored doing chores. I especially get bored when I'm working on the laundry. I gather up everyone's dirty clothes--and sometimes smelly clothes--and I have to sort them. I take all the dark colored ones and put them in one pile, and all the light colored ones and put them in another pile. This isn't hard, but it sure is boring. But if I don't do it, we run out of pants! Sometimes we have to do things even though it's boring and we don't like it.
The Bible tells us to "work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people".(Ephesians 6:7). So that means that no matter what we're doing, we need to do it well and do our best. We also need to know that the Bible says "to do everything without complaining or arguing." (Philippians 2:14). That can be really, really hard sometimes. I know I like to complain about things I don't like to do, and the things I think are so boring. But complaining doesn't make it any easier or any less boring.
But what about the kind of boredom where it feels like there's nothing to do? That's very different from having to do something that feels boring. Well, let's look to the Bible again for some answers. The Bible is the first place we need to go to find out how to live well. And we want to deal with our boredom as best we can. (Or else we drive the people around us crazy!)
When I started thinking about this episode and looking for Bible verses, this is one of the first ones that came to mind. Ready for it?
Genesis 1:27--So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them.
One of our favorite shows right now is The Wild Kratts. We love to learn about all the different kinds of animals that are out there in the world. Each episode is packed with so many animals, each one is unique and important in its own way. And each one tells me something about God. God must be incredibly creative, imaginative, and interesting for Him to create everything from a giraffe to a turtle; from a honey badger to a bunny rabbit; from a koala to a shark, and everything in between. God created the plants, flowers, and trees the animals use for food and shelter. He created the mountains, deserts, oceans, and forests where the animals all live. He created everything. And most importantly of all, when God created us, He made us to be like Him. We are creative like God.
Now, you can't make something out of nothing like God did. He's so powerful that all He had to do was speak and there was a squirrel or a hippo or a moose. We can't do that. But we can use our imaginations, creativity, and curiosity to create. We can create art like drawing with chalk or crayons, painting a picture, working with clay or even Play-doh. That all counts as creativity! We can write stories or poems about things we make-up, or things we want to remember, or things we just notice all around us. Some of the best poems in the world are about simple things that people just noticed around them. We can make up a new game to play. We can build a fort . We can pretend to be super heroes or astronauts or doctors. Pretending is a really great way to be creative. Whenever you pretend, it's like you're practicing for what you might be someday when you grow up. True, you might not ever be a super hero like Captain America or a princess like Elsa and Anna. But when you pretend to be them, you're also being brave, honest, and strong, and all of that will help you as you grow-up! Isn't that cool? I think God designed us that way on purpose. God knows that it's hard for us to learn how to do what is right and good, but He gave us creativity so we can practice through pretend.
Another verse that came to mind is Proverbs 6:6. I'm going to read it to you in the New Living Translation. "Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise!"
Have you ever noticed ants? Other than to stomp on them if you find one in your house, I mean. Ants are always busy. I've yet to find one hanging out in a tiny little hammock stretched between two twigs. Ants are always on the go. They collect food. They work on the ant hill. They're busy little dudes. So this verse is telling us that if teeny little ants know how to work hard and keep busy, then we should too. This verse also reminds us that if we just look around at that big interesting world God created we can learn things! And what we learn from the ants is to not waste time being lazy.
It's good to rest. It's important to get enough sleep especially. And there are definitely times when it's good to put your feet up and relax. There's nothing wrong with swinging in a hammock, or watching a movie with your family, or even playing video games for a little while. The trouble is when we don't do any work, or don't use our brains because we're spending too much time relaxing. It's so important to use our brains to make them strong. I don't know if ants are geniuses or not, but they are smart enough to not be lazy all the time.
And the last verse I want to talk to you about is about Jesus. This verse explains to use how Jesus grew-up. And what I mean by that is, did Jesus grow-up being lazy and rude? Hmm, that doesn't sound like Jesus. Let's read what the verse says.
Luke 2:52--And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
So there are four different ways Jesus grew-up that we can talk about and learn from. The first two is that Jesus grew in wisdom and stature. Growing in wisdom means that Jesus learned lots of things. Jesus exercised his mind as he grew up. He learned lots of facts like schoolwork, I'm sure, but I also think he used his creativity and imagination. He asked questions and was curious. All of this is part of wisdom.
To grow in stature means that he grew taller. The Bible is telling us that Jesus literally grew up. He grew tall and strong. I'm sure he ran and played when he was a child. And he learned to work hard with his body, like his dad who was a carpenter and made things out of wood.
The verse also says that Jesus grew in favor with God and man. Favor means to like something or someone. You might have a favorite color or a favorite movie or a favorite food. And if you favor a person that means you like them. So we know that as Jesus grew-up God liked him and people liked him. He found ways to show kindness and love to the people around him. He obeyed God and showed him love and respect.
What does any of that have to do with boredom? Well, kids, I'll tell you. These are four different ways you can think about using your creative powers when you're bored. You can use your mind in a creative way to learn something new or imagine or pretend. You can use your body to exercise and grow strong, to practice skills for a game, or to simply run and explore and enjoy the corner of the world God has given you. You can grow spiritually by reading your Bible or praying, or by thinking of ways you can show God how you love and obey Him. And you can use your creativity to be a blessing to people around you. Draw someone a picture or make them a card. Find ways to help people around you. Think of something really nice to say to somebody. Being bored is actually a gateway into growing in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man just like Jesus. Boredom is just an invitation to get creative! God loves to see His children be creative like He is.
On the Bloom Kids Treehouse blog, I have some different things for you to do if you are bored this week. Make sure you check it out or ask your parents to look for you. No excuses for being bored this week!
Questions and Answers
Last week I asked you for jokes. Let's listen to the clips you guys sent me. (The first one is from Betsy)
Alright, now this week, my question for you is....since you've been home from school now a couple weeks, tell me about something really fun you've done.
I'll tell you what my favorite fun thing is that we've done lately. We've been going for walks just about every day and we've been looking for Teddy Bears that people have put in their windows. We also wrote encouraging and nice things on our driveway with chalk so that anyone who is walking by can see it and smile. So send me your voice messages this week with your favorite fun things!
You can use this link to submit voice messages.
You can use this link to submit voice messages.
The Final Word
Well, we're here at the final word for the week. For this week, our memory verse is Luke 2:52, "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man." I want you to work on memorizing that verse this week, and thinking about what it means. Remember that you can grow as Jesus did, using your body, your mind, your spirituality, and your relationship to honor God. Let's pray together now.
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Discussion Questions for Grown-Ups
- All this talk about creativity applies to us too! C.S. Lewis said, "You are never too old to set another goal, or to dream a new dream." Talk to your kids about some of your own interests and hobbies. You can even share with them something you've always wanted to learn but haven't tried yet. Maybe they'll be interested in it too and that's something you can do together. You can talk about things you used to do as a kid or a teenager. Get out the old photos and show them for inspiration.
- Make a list of things for your kiddos to do while they're bored (or download the printable available here). Be sure to check out the "Free Printables" page available on The Bloom Kids Treehouse blog for coloring pages, word searches, and other activities. We keep ours in a "boredom box" and the kids can pull out a slip of paper when they're feeling bored.
- Take a walk this week and look for all sorts of colors, animals, and shapes in nature. Talk about how creative God is and how nature can tell us about him. For a bonus scripture reading check out Psalm 19.
- Encourage each other throughout the week to not be a lazybones, to not argue and complain, and to work hard like you're working for the Lord. This goes for us too! Go ahead and let your kids join in on calling you out if they here you grumbling. Use a code phrase like "Ants in your pants!" when you hear someone grumbling. Have fun with this so no one gets crankier. 😉
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