When you get bored, Dance with him
Ever since I was little, I heard that the devil attacks when one is bored. He turns our minds to vice, to pornography, to gossip and deceit. However, it wasn’t until recently that I learned that when we are bored, God can use that time as well. It all depends on whom we want to dance with.
I think I knew Joe was “the one” when I realized we could sit in the car in complete silence. No music on, no conversation going, silence. I remember once my sister got in the car with us and asked, “So, what? You guys don’t listen to music? What do you do?” Joe told her we talked, and we do. We’re not total weirdos. However, sometimes I find myself just watching Jesus watch us.
Driving is my least favorite activity, but I do miss driving to school. I used to commute for two hours every day going to school (one to and one from). I’m not sad about all drives. What I’m mourning is the loss of the time spent bored, in silence or with music only as a background noise while you clean out the mess in your head. You know what I’m talking about? It varied from thinking of what you should’ve said that other night when you saw that person you hadn’t seen in years to how you haven’t really called your mom with the sole intention of telling her you loved her to why giraffes are the ones that got the long necks and not elephants. Sometimes you even started laughing alone because you remembered a joke you heard three years back. I tell you, there was no one in that car with me but Jesus, and somehow when I noticed He was there in my boredom, I felt loved. I felt listened to. He patiently listened to my thoughts, and then I turned on the radio and found a song that was a perfect response to what I had said and I thought “Oh goodness, Jesus, You really love me”.
It doesn’t happen only to me because I’ve talked about it with others who had the same experience. Not the same, same because Jesus loves us all uniquely, but they had similar experiences. Others, however, have commented on how it only happens to a select few. They are right. Kind of. The select few are those willing to overcome being bored until He comes and then, dancing with Him. Experiences where Jesus talks to you in simple thoughts, in your imagination, in a song, in a painting happen when your mind is open to receive. It happens when you are not dominating the conversation. Jesus is a gentleman. If you’re looking at your phone, concentrating on something, or focusing your attention elsewhere, He isn’t always going to take your attention away from your distraction. He isn’t a distraction, He should be whom we are focusing on. I promise you, nothing else is worth as much as knowing you are loved by Him. If you have nothing to do and you have the option of watching TV or playing with your phone and being bored, I urge you to get bored.
Believe me, it’s worth it. Before you get to that, the best way to do this is with Scripture. Open the Bible, read a story or a phrase. Then, I challenge you to sit somewhere and look at something, the sky, your wall, a tree, the ceiling fan, and let your mind roam free. Try to look at Him looking at you. Tell Jesus, “I’m listening”. Don’t ask anything. Listen. Let your imagination run with the story or the phrase. Are you a character in the story? Were those words spoken to you? Does that phrase relate to anything you’re dealing with? It takes practice. You’re going to get distracted. Sometimes, you’ll have to get up and get back to your routine, and it won’t be until later when Jesus whispers something. It’ll be a thought, an “I love you”, an “I missed you”, an “I’m glad you’ve come home”, or something completely different but positive that you’ll be like “That was random”. Jesus is random to us sometimes because He sees everything, and we only see parts, but He is lovely. You’ll find you can be moved by songs, by posts on social media, by words someone says. Don’t attribute that to the singer or the post or the person, attribute that to Jesus, and thank Him.
Yes, I discovered it when there was no option but to be alone sitting in a car going somewhere. If you’re thinking there is no way to find some alone time, don’t fret. Sometimes, you don’t even have to be alone. You could be sitting in silence with someone when you suddenly find yourself looking at Him look at you. Regardless of when you find yourself in that situation, when you get the chance, dance with Him.
