I don’t know how many times I’ve seen the Star Wars films. I’ve probably seen Return of the Jedi more than any of the other films, probably more than any other film period. Needless to say, I know a lot about Star Wars; I have most of the crawls memorized and I can speak along with all of the characters. Sadly, though, I probably have more lines of Star Wars dialogue memorized than I do Bible verses.
Part of being a nerd is obsessing over the objects of our affection. I really like Star Wars so I watch all the movies and I’ve read a lot of the books. I really like Star Trek so I watched The Next Generation almost every day of my life for about three years. I really like Battlestar Galactica so I bought all of the seasons on DVD and had marathon viewing sessions. I really like a lot of nerdy things and my actions reflect that obsessive nature.
I also really like Jesus but, based upon my actions, you could say that I care more about what Captain Picard says than what Jesus says.
It’s interesting that so many people, not just nerds, can invest so much time and energy into their own personal obsessions or pet projects. From collecting and organizing comic books to doing a kitchen remodel in the house, people can commit themselves to something and pour countless hours into it. Christians do this too; we heavily invest ourselves into all manner of things but sometimes don’t give as much to Jesus. If Jesus is the most important part of our lives, then he deserves more than the scraps that are left over when finish with our other interests.
I’m not advocating asceticism; I think Christians can pursue Christ and watch Star Wars or collect stamps or play golf. Our other interests, though, and how much time we devote to them can provide a good gauge for where our hearts are at. Last week I spent 20 hours playing Dragon Age: Origins and probably not even a tenth of that time sitting before God. Playing video games isn’t bad, but it is if it gets in the way of investing in my life with God.
I’m all for nerding out and obsessing over a show, book or hobby. We just need to make sure that those other obsessions aren’t taking the place of our first love. If we claim to follow Jesus, that needs to be reflected in the lives we live and how we spend our time. If someone looked at our lives and decided that we follow Harry Potter, World of Warcraft or working out, then something’s off and we need to re-center and reprioritize our lives.
Though if you’re a nerd, and someone thinks you’re working out too much, that may not be an entirely bad thing.
How to you balance your life with God and other activities or hobbies?
What is the Christian equivalent of “nerding out” over Jesus?
i think this is a great post. i’ve been thinking a lot about how easy it is to obsess over something, and just kill that obsession by replacing it with something else. currently ive been addicted to this one tv show and probably watched something 20 hours this week… which is pretty sad/ pathetic. i’d like to obsess over Jesus or replace that with him, but not sure if there are any suggestions about that?
I know i can start by making time in the Word a priority, and can focus on the things God has called me to do, but I’d still like to find a glorious obsession in Jesus, which i’m still waiting on.
“You will seek Me and you will find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13