Good in and of itself
A tangent to our recent discussion on homosexuality deals with the question of what is good, rather than what is bad. I think that spirituality has a lot to do with being connected, both to other people and to other moments in time. We talk about having an "eternal perspective", and I think it is safe to say this implies we are both aware of, and care about the state of the distant future. One question that interests me concerns the way we perceive our future, especially beyond death. Do we need to have an awareness of, and a connection to our eternal future in order to be happy? Can we be happy based purely on present circumstances that have no bearing on the future?
I often find myself unwillling to really hope for things that aren't guarunteed, but I still find myself acting as if they were real. For instance, recently I decided that I wanted to leave active duty for the national guard so I could go to school full time. In particular, I wanted to go to law school. I knew that I would have to start applications and take the LSAT if it was going to happen, even though I was not at all sure that a transfer would be approved. The outcome was critical to my future, and I was quite anxious. I guess you could say that I was excited about the prospects, but because it was only hope I didn't really feel any joy. I tried not to think about it, but also to motivate myself to do the considerable work that was necessary. (I was approved to transfer, and am waiting to hear back from the schools I applied to).
Sometimes I feel the same way about my eternal prospects. There are a lot of things that I think are possible, and which I hope for very much. But I don't really feel reassured all of the time. It is easier not to think about death and what happens afterwards. So can I stil motivate myself to make considerable changes in my life according to this hopeful view of eternity? Can I be happy if I am constantly putting eternity out of my mind? Can hope alone make us happy if it comes together with anxiety?
I often find myself unwillling to really hope for things that aren't guarunteed, but I still find myself acting as if they were real. For instance, recently I decided that I wanted to leave active duty for the national guard so I could go to school full time. In particular, I wanted to go to law school. I knew that I would have to start applications and take the LSAT if it was going to happen, even though I was not at all sure that a transfer would be approved. The outcome was critical to my future, and I was quite anxious. I guess you could say that I was excited about the prospects, but because it was only hope I didn't really feel any joy. I tried not to think about it, but also to motivate myself to do the considerable work that was necessary. (I was approved to transfer, and am waiting to hear back from the schools I applied to).
Sometimes I feel the same way about my eternal prospects. There are a lot of things that I think are possible, and which I hope for very much. But I don't really feel reassured all of the time. It is easier not to think about death and what happens afterwards. So can I stil motivate myself to make considerable changes in my life according to this hopeful view of eternity? Can I be happy if I am constantly putting eternity out of my mind? Can hope alone make us happy if it comes together with anxiety?
posted by Redbeard at 11:15 AM
1 Comments:
I get this Mike.
I have often wondered some similar things.
How can so many people be so motivated by the life after this? I'm not really in touch with it. They say, "When we return to Heavenly Father", and I have no idea what that will be like, so I don't feel extremely motivated by it.
but I do feel motivated by the instant joy and peace that comes at moments of doing good
but equally motivated by the instant gratification of candy bars which are bad
sorry this isn't exactly thoughtful.
Post a Comment
<< Home