Sunday, April 15, 2007

Does this bother you?

I get a "Quote of the Day" thing on my homepage and this quote was there and I really liked it:


We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?
- Ray Bradbury

At first, I didn't think too much about it, but when I started thinking about my own life, it really struck me. What kinds of things really bother me? How long has it been since God really tugged on my heart? When was the last time I actually did something about it? What issues--social, personal, etc-- do I really care about?
This quote really convicted me of how I have been living my life. I haven't been bothered enough! Only recently have I become passionate about different issues... but I still struggle with actually doing something about it-- griping about it changes nothing!
I've had to realize that I need to allow myself to be bothered. Sounds uncomfortable, I know! But if I guard myself against being bothered about things-- my life, my relationships, my faith, social injustices, tragedies, etc-- I won't grow as a person. I easily say, "well, it doesn't directly effect me, so it doesn't matter" or "what will worrying about it do?" However, if you worry about it enough, change will happen because you won't want it there, nagging at the back of your mind. You'll actually do something to change it! So I will pray that God will give me the strength to open myself up to being bothered. And especially to do something about the things that end up bothering me. Imagine the change that could happen if everyone allowed themselves to be bothered

2 comments:

Makeesha said...

that's really good Katie

I tend to be bothered about things that don't ultimately matter and then not allow myself to be bothered by things that DO matter because it means I'll have to do something about it...good challenge!

Unknown said...

bother! now i'm thinking of getting all bothered about bothering to be bothered.

Which incidently writing the word bothered several times makes me think it's a really weird word. Am i bothered though?

Seriously, "am i bothered" in reply to any Q is the catch phrase of our gen - i choose to try and live in splendid glorious me centredness and it is only when i start to realise that it is a myth that i am not hurting anyone - that being bothered is what people are about me, because of what i do, helps me a lil bit to begin to do something...