Wednesday, March 14, 2012

The struggle for meaning.

Life is a constant struggle. We fight depression, health issues, social issues, and the list goes on. I, as an American, often times downplay my own pain, in the name of physical comfort. I go on about how in other countries, people are hungry, sick, and oppressed by their government. There is some truth to this. We, as Americans are very fortunate. I will never argue against that. But what if my pain, causes the same stress as others with more obvious problems?

Humans are amazing at adapting. Throughout history, people have lived in horrendous conditions. They fought to survive these conditions. What if something like depression, causes the same amount of emotional stress as somebody in hunger? What if we are all in the same condition on this earth, no matter if we are rich or poor? We are all in a constant struggle to survive, emotionally and physically.

I personally, am in a constant struggle. A struggle to see purpose, hope, love, beauty. Often times, I struggle even to fulfill even the simplest tasks. I struggle because I am depressed. I am depressed because I struggle to see the things mentioned above. But what if, all these things that I struggle with have purpose. What if that purpose is to point me to the one whom these thing belong to? C.S. Lewis once said that he who's sole purpose is to find peace will never find it, but he who's sole purpose is to find Christ shall have both. I have to remember that it is not those things that I long for, it is Christ. I must remember that this life is a constant struggle, but Christ remains the same, and I remain in Christ.

At first, I am tempted to tell you to fight to keep your mind on the things that are meaningful, but that falls short. If we search for meaning, we shall by no means find it. If we search for Christ, we shall have Both.