Boredom II

My last post synthesized some ideas about boredom. It ended on a note of uncertainty though. "It's more complicated, isn't it." Of course it's more complicated. Everything in this life is more complicated than it seems. A paper clip seems simple, but it's really not. Look at it through an electron microscope and it will suddenly appear much more complex. The same has to be true about our perceptions on why we want to not be bored.

In my last post, I concluded that the Christian idea of man's goal to be with God in heaven, forever, worshipping Him, fit perfectly with observations I myself have made. This seems simple. We want to be with God forever, because it will cause us joy. In fact it will entertain us, and pleasure in and of itself points to that ultimate "entertainment."

But why does this cause us pleasure? What is pleasure? It seems that the idea that we want to be with God forever because it's pleasurable for us, is actually backwards. It is because we are supposed to go worship God forever in heaven that it is pleasurable for us. That is how God designed the world. Doing the things we ought to do ultimately will make us happy.

Ok, now this introduces a new difficulty into the equation. Sin is often pleasurable, however, it is also directly contrary to how things ought to be. So, something is wrong. If you're a Christian, you understand that we have a fallen nature which causes us to get into trouble where a perfect being would not. We see a hot stove, and for some strange reason we're compelled to touch it.

This fact, then, corrects the equation. The problem is in man. Sin is often pleasurable because we see poison as candy. The seeking nature of man, however, is not shaken. We still seek pleasure. We seek entertainment.

So the truth stands. Good things are pleasurable because they point us to the Divine Pleasure. Sin is pleasurable because we are damaged by sin itself. Being bored is not good, because if you're bored you're not doing anything, and we're supposed to be doing things. There will most assuredly be no boredom in heaven.