Laughter. Sorrow. Anger. Wonder.
Aim their laughter like a cannon that booms out over the water.
Aim their sorrow like a rainbow that follows a storm.
Aim their anger like a lightning bolt that kills a man standing under a tree.
Be careful not to stand under trees.
People would rather be angry that bored.
This is why we pay attention to politics.
People would rather be frightened than bored.
This is why we watch scary movies.
People would rather be sad than bored.
This is why we read books that break our hearts.
People would rather be laughing than bored.
This is why we have comedians and memes and YouTube and TikTok.
Why is it so profoundly difficult
to simply sit still in silence?
Because whenever we are silent
for more than a few minutes,
all of our shadows and secrets and sins
come to the surface of our consciousness.
Jesus says, “Whenever you pray,
go into the closet and shut the door.”1
Surely, Jesus knows about all the
skeletons we like to hide in our closets.
And Jesus wants prayer to be the place
where we confront those skeletons
and face our fears.
If we do not confront the skeletons in our closets,
then they will control the whole house.
If we do not control our shadows,
then they will run the whole show.
This is why some say
that all of humanity’s problems
stem from our inability to sit quietly
in a room alone. 2
– Daniel DeForest London,
The Cloud of Unknowing, Distilled
Anger, fear, sorrow, and laughter are forms of excitement. Excite people and you will be the center of attention.
But the happiest thing to do, if you can do it, is fill people with a sense of wonder.
Wonder is a feeling without skeletons or shadows.
Wonder is a reaction, not an emotion.
Wonder is triggered by realizations that are bigger than our minds can contain.
Roy H. Williams
1 Matthew ch 6, verse 6
2 Blaise Pascal, (1623 – 1662)
“It’s what you choose to believe that makes you the person you are.“
– Karen Marie Moning