“There are some things which are to be enjoyed, some which are to be used, and some whose function is both to enjoy and to use. Those which are to be enjoyed make us happy; those which are to be used assist us and give us a boost, so to speak, as we press on towards our happiness. . . . But if we choose to enjoy things that are to be used, our advance is impeded and sometimes even diverted, and we are held back, or even put off, from attaining things which are to be enjoyed, because we are hamstrung by our love of lower things.”
Augustine, De Doctrina Christiana (Oxford, 1995), page 15.
There are two ways to relate to everything: enjoying and using. Enjoying is the higher, more loving experience. We all understand that. When someone sincerely enjoys you, finds you delightful, you feel loved. But if someone finds you tedious, you don’t feel loved. Enjoyment is love. We love God by enjoying him above all else. But all our idolatries arise from treating God as a useful steppingstone to something else, and treating lower things as if they could be an ultimate experience.
Tomorrow at church, let’s not replace the high worship of God with being merely “practical.” Practicality is about usefulness. But when we set our hearts first and foremost on enjoying Christ more and helping others enjoy him more, we find him to be helpful.
“Those who are far from you will perish, . . . . But for me, it is good to be near God.” Psalm 73:27-28
