Posts Tagged: contemplation

“Stop Watching Yourself Live!”

On August 2, 2024 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

“Contemplation often makes life miserable. We should act more, think less, and stop watching ourselves live.” (Nicolas Chamfort)

Ҧ But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror.

For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.

But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” (James 1:22-25, English Standard Version)

Sometimes, I find myself observing my life instead of living it. Don’t get me wrong. Observation and contemplation have their proper place in the world and in my life. On the other hand, my 12-step sponsor often reminds me “JKDTNRT,” which is text-speak for “Just keep doing the next right thing.”

But I struggle with this a lot. I recently found myself convinced that I should stop overthinking things. However, I soon discovered that I was overthinking overthinking. (Think about it, but not too much!)

A website that I sometimes visit is associated with “The Center for Action and Contemplation.” It seems somehow significant that action comes first. In a sense, action is the raw material for contemplation. Without action, our contemplation is merely daydreaming.

James reminds us that faith without works is like contemplating ourselves in a mirror. It may show us who we are, at least briefly. However, it doesn’t change who we are. While we are human beings and not human doings, it is only be doing the right things in the right way that we become truly human. I need to remind myself daily to stop watching myself live. At the end of most 12-step meetings, we say, “Keep coming back! It works if you work it and give a lot of love.”

Amen to that!

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