I’ve noticed something in myself recently. It’s been going on for a while I guess, but I just became more fully aware of it in the last few weeks. I haven’t been living with a sense of wonder. It used to be something that I experienced much more abundantly, but for a while now wonder has been hard to come by for me. This has led me to pick up a book I bought years ago called Recapture the Wonder by Ravi Zacharias.
He defines wonder as an “enchantment with reality.” I love that definition, and it’s something I want to begin experiencing again. I know that at least part of the reason that wonder has alluded me recently is that I have spent too much time on Facebook and Twitter getting angry or bothered about the state of the world. I recently deleted both of those apps from my phone so I don’t check in on the latest hullabaloos 50 times a day.
I have found in the past that if I focus on gratitude then wonder seems to flow naturally, but I am learning that anger and discouragement with the state of things in our culture does nothing for wonder but block it.
Ravi Zacharias asks a very important question in the opening chapter of his book, “Can life be in tune with reality and also be enchanting without being escapist?” I’m excited to see how he answers that question in his book, but my preliminary answer is that “yes, it can;” but the reality we are “in tune with” must be a full picture of reality. I am discovering through experience that I am in danger of losing my wonder if my “reality” is confined to a snapshot of all the things wrong with our culture here in the United States.
I commit to start noticing again all kinds of things that fill my heart with gratitude so I can keep a more complete view of reality rather than a skewed one. Let me give a variety of examples. As I walked out of church on Wednesday night, I was filled with gratitude to be part of this special kind of family that Jesus made where forgiveness is the norm and is granted freely. Aren’t you thankful that just by tilting our planet on its axis, God created all the seasons that fill each year with so many varied experiences? I am thankful for early mornings when I sit quietly with God and feel completely welcomed into His presence even though I have hurt Him and others. I love how a jacket traps the heat that my body naturally makes and keeps me warm in the cold; it’s amazing that our bodies transform energy from food into warmth! I am so thankful for the Bible that I can meditate on and receive truths of transcending worth that fill my heart with joy.
I commit to dwelling on these kinds of simple marvels and deep theological truths rather than stressing over the latest Twitter controversy. Wonder is sure to follow!