Okay everyone, raise your hand if you’ve done the following: you were so bored that you ate, not because you were hungry but because even eating added some mental stimulation to your day.
If you didn’t raise your hand, you’re lying (or clearly you have big brain energy).
But in all honesty, a large majority of things we do when we’re bored are pretty harmless; my preferred choice of activity is watching a sitcom. However, boredom itself is not completely harmless and can often lead to not-so-harmless activities.
In fact boredom is so dangerous to our spiritual lives that God spoke to St. Faustina and said “When boredom and discouragement beat against your heart, run away from yourself and hide in My Heart.” He’s quite literally telling her to flee from boredom – that’s how detrimental it can be.
Even the simple example above can apply. While snacking is pretty harmless, if it gets to the point of gluttony such that food is used to fill a void rather than for nourishment and enjoyment, then that’s where boredom can lead to sin. Of course, that’s an arguably small example and there are plenty more severe/obvious sins that can derive from boredom.
So now we know that being bored is not ideal, but how do we avoid it – or at the very least, ensure that we don’t fall into sin when we are bored? The good thing is, there are practical ways to combat boredom. The good “Christian” answer might be to fill your time with prayer and service, and while those things are beneficial and fruitful, it’s often not always the most practical approach because, like most humans, we need rest. I don’t know about y’all, but I don’t think I’m at a spiritual level where I can fill every free moment with prayer and not get bored (but if you are, that’s great and I truly admire and aspire for your spiritual stamina!).
I especially admire one of the stories of St. Anthony. When he was bored in the desert (because what is there to do in the middle of the desert??), he was being tempted by the devil to pursue his earthly lust. But in that moment he was called out of his shelter and told by an angel to start weaving palm leaves. And then in his breaks, he would stand up and pray.
If we really think about it, God is pretty much telling all of us to get a hobby.
But in all seriousness I love this story because weaving wasn’t something very ‘spiritual’ but rather it was something creative and mentally stimulating. Truly this story embodies the lifestyle described in 1 Thessalonians 4:11, “That you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you”. While not every moment of our lives may be used to overtly praise God, we can still glorify him in everything that we do – even in the fun or mundane tasks (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Anyway, that’s my spiel. I hope it was mildly entertaining and somewhat informative. May God bless you for the rest of the semester – and get a hobby!