The Blahs

It's funny how you can feel “blah” when nothing much is going on in life. No big excitement. No big crisis. All is mundane… mediocre… regular. Everything is fine, but it’s still blah. If life is not a manic / depressive rollercoaster, we are apathetic and lethargic as if life were meaningless. WHY is that?

Why can’t we manage to enjoy contentment? In our Über-everything culture (instant this, fast-paced-heart-pounding that, have the best, look the best, be the best, celeb-obsessed) it’s no wonder we don’t know how to handle being content. We’ve forgotten what it looks like, what it feels like.

Contentment is on the brink of extinction – it is systematically being deleted from our vocabulary. There seems to be no such thing as “stopping to smell the roses” any longer. There’s no time to sit back, relax and enjoy life for fear we’ll lose something or miss the next big thing. So when the “blahs” hit, you’re sucked into the big black abyss and life is over. We have simply forgotten how make our minds and bodies STOP.

The Bible defines contentment as a state of mind in which one's desires are confined to his lot whatever it may be. It is opposed to envy, avarice, ambition, anxiety, and repining. It arises from the inward disposition, and is the offspring of humility, and of an intelligent consideration of the rectitude and benignity of divine providence, the greatness of the divine promises, and our own unworthiness; as well as from the view the gospel opens up to us of rest and peace hereafter.

Wow – that’s kind of scary! Certainly seems impossible. Has anyone achieved that?

Paul did. Paul fully grasped contentment and yet, one thing he did was to forget what lay behind, reached forward to what was ahead… and he continued to press on toward the goal. Again – WOW! If Paul can do it, then surely we have the ability to do it too.

I’m in the midst of the black abyss of blahs at the moment. I’ve been here many times before. And even with Paul’s words of encouragement and the definitions of contentment, I don’t have a quick fix to “snap out of it.” Focusing on all the blessings in my life is probably a good place to start. (From the largest blessings like family, friends, and work to the smallest - a good song, a scoop of Breyers Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream or a Starbucks Grande Mocha.)

Eventually I will manage to banish the blahs to a distant land. God is kind that way…allowing us our blah seasons. Maybe I should train myself to change my thinking and actually enjoy these “contented” times… There’s no crisis – that’s a great thing! There are no huge events or happenings swallowing up all my time and energy – another great thing! The blah-times do provide a chance to stop and smell the roses, notice the beautiful summer sunsets and enjoy the warm breeze.

Hmmm… maybe things aren’t so blah after all.

FYI: Definition of contentment: The state of being contented; satisfaction; ease of mind. Satisfied with what one is or has; not wanting more or anything else. Ready to accept or acquiesce; willing. Desiring no more or no less than what one has; satisfied.