What Now?
I will tell you up front that this article was inspired by David Foster Wallace’s “This is Water” commencement address at Kenyon College in 2005. I will also disclose that if you listen to this speech, it does include some offensive (foul) language, so please use discretion.
The speech begins with an older fish passing by two younger fish and saying, “Morning boys, how’s the water?” The two younger fish just swim on by and look at each other and one says to the other, “What is water?” This illustration is an example of how people can take life for granted and how we can become so immune to the experiences of life that our default attitudes of how we think about things are just done automatically or unconsciously.
Whether you look at this as fortunate or unfortunate, God has given man free will to make choices on how to respond to each experience that we encounter. It is up to each one of us to decide how we will believe and conduct ourselves in this life. It is indeed the choices and actions of this life that will dictate how we will spend our eternal life (1 Pet. 1:17).
You may be wondering by this time what all of this has to do with the title of the article, “What Now?” I like this title because, for the most part, each of our lives will be filled with long periods of time to contemplate, “what are we doing with our lives?” Now for some, you are thinking, “I never have a free minute to myself!” This may be true for this part of your life, but if you are fortunate to live long enough, there will be lots of times you will have time to contemplate. In these times, you are given free will to make a choice.
Most of us are self-centered in our thinking and we think every experience revolves around us. Most of our existence is spent in frustration and annoyance. It takes real discipline not to default to that kind of self-centeredness because most of us have grown up as the centers of our own universes. This started when we were babies (feed me, change me, amuse me, give me attention) and continues as toddlers and youths. It is not until we gain some independent thinking for ourselves that we actually become aware of free will and choices. It is so easy to stay with what we know (comfort, ease and convenience). It is only when we begin to exercise some difficult thinking that we begin focusing on others’ thoughts, feelings, experiences and situations. When we begin these thought processes, we realize there is more to life than me. Our focus begins to think about helping or serving others, having compassion and empathy for others, looking at life from someone else’s point of view. This is unbelievably hard because our default is self-centeredness and that comes so easily.
I bring all of this up to get us to think about our spiritual life outside the church building. The time we spend together inside this building is minuscule in comparison to how much time we spend outside these doors. While we are inside these doors, it is very easy for most to be on their best behavior, focus on spiritual things, think about ways to edify others and be the best versions of ourselves. But it is the time outside these doors that I want us to focus on. It is so easy to come here and be inspired and edified and then leave and drift into some default behavior that does not resemble anything like it did inside the doors.
Experiences, whether good or bad, will come and go. On one hand, you may get baptized, get married, lead a prayer, teach a class, preach a sermon, take food to sick ones, lead singing, make a comment in class, get really inspired, or on the other hand, become sick, cheat on your spouse, get drunk or high, fornicate with someone, steal from your work, lie to your spouse or family, lose a family member, become very discouraged ➔ What now?
It is going to be the way you respond to these experiences that will define you. The great thing about all of this is that if you still have breath in your lungs, then you have God’s mercy and grace that is available to you. The thing is, if your response is a positive, Christian reaction ➔ What now? You don’t rest on your accomplishments; you keep glorifying God with your life. If your response is a negative, unfaithful response ➔ What now? Repent and ask God for forgiveness and “keep on keeping on” trying to glorify God with your life.
Most of your life is going to be a series of long, boring, mundane routines that can leave you utterly frustrated, jaded and annoyed with everything if you fall back on your default attitude (cf. Eccl. 1:3-9). But, if you can focus on counting your blessings, on what God and Jesus have done for you, having empathy and compassion for those you encounter daily, then maybe your life will be filled with joy, appreciation and service to God and others (cf. Eccl. 12:13). Like Wallace said at the end of his speech, “Remember, this is water! This is water!”
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