Just because you like it….

One of my favorite things about the Kennedy family is all the photos and videos they took. And some of my favorite films are the videos of the family playing touch football. Their football games appear to not be serious, but fun and light-hearted. And there appear to be no world-class athletes in the videos.

Social media gives us the illusion that we are actually doing something. Whether it’s adventures or social justice warriors, banging away on their keyboards, social media provides us with a sense that we’re participating even though we’re merely watching.

We’ve shifted from doing to consuming.

And if you’re like me, there are activities that you are bad at, but you just enjoy them. And because you’re bad at them, maybe you can feel the ire of the experts. “Who does this guy think he is?!!!” I enjoy running once or twice a week. But here’s the truth. I suck at it. I’m never going to be world class nor am I even ever going to win a 5K. And honestly, if you trained a little, you could probably outrun me. But I just enjoy it. It’s a challenge for me—the heat, the cold, the wind, and my feeble lungs.

I enjoy painting and I’m decent at seeing faces and light, but I’m probably never going to be world class at it. I just enjoy it.

There is something really beautiful to enjoying without aspiring.

Pianos used to be part of many living rooms, classrooms, and Sunday school rooms. Music used to be part of the American landscape of things that we did. Now we consume music. But in previous generations, they did music.

Sports. Music. Art. Writing. Touch football.

What are things you’re not doing because you can feel “the expert” shaking his head at you?

Instead, compare your art to not having art at all. Just enjoy how much fun it is to draw something, even though it’s far from perfect. What are you doing today that takes you away from consuming? What are you making for the sheer enjoyment of making it? You don’t have to be world class and maybe nobody even needs to know about it.

I love this quote: “The glory of God is man fully alive”. And I also love the quote by John Eldredge, “don’t ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive, because what the world needs are men who have come alive.”

Social media is simple consumption. It’s consuming. (Get my double entendre, there?)

What is it that you need to do for the sake of enjoying doing it? The simple, powerful, playful act of volition, "Because it's fun."