Bedrooms vs. Gamerooms

I had a dream Sunday night and actually remembered it today so I figured I'd tell you about it. What a better medium to tell it to you... than in one that you cant interrupt me in. :) I've heard it said that you can only dream about things you have actually seen. So if you think something is made up... its not really.. its just your mind dealing with having to insert something into a "movie" (or "filmstrip" if you are as old as me!) that it can make it into what your brain is trying to say.

As the memory of my dream begins, I'm walking into one of those mega-churches. Im a mega church kid from my youth. You know the type.. Youth groups of 400... Sanctuaries that seat 5000 per service...and the church runs 3 services. You know.. like the North West Mothership. Anyway, I walked in to the sanctuary which really resembled a stadium seating movie theater.

My brain took off out of this setting for a moment and went to my memory of designing my current house. I can remember when I was thinking about the size of each of the rooms... I thought, "Benjamin's bedroom doesnt need to be big, because hes just going to be sleeping there." While he got lucky and got more than a closet, we didnt make an overly large room to hold all of his toys in every way he might want to play with them. We made a descent sized room, that he could keep his stuff in, and them made a large game room that he and his siblings could do the playing in.

When I flipped back to the sermon, I was sitting in the middle and the pastor was describing how the life we live in is like the bedroom of our house. The Gameroom of the house, is the life that God designed for us to live in. When we accept Christ into our lives, God shows us that there is more to life than our beds and a little floorspace to push a car around on. There's a room that big enough for a pool table... or enough room to have friends over and not be cramped.

Bedrooms are safe. People generally knock before entering. Siblings generally stay out of your room. You can do your homework in your own little world. Gamerooms are rowdy and loud. Stuff ends up everywhere.

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. -- John 10:10b (NASB)
or
I came that they may have life, and live it out in the gameroom. -- John 10:10b (Roger's unauthorized version)

Our lives are comfortable in our own little world of our bedroom. Fairly controlled and peaceful. Christ came so that we can experince life through the door of our room. The gameroom that God designed already has the ping pong table, the foosball table, and the bigscreen televisions each for the inferior gaming systems that we all know about. Its loud and the walls are a bit more solid to be able to handle rougher play. (And, Im sure that there is a pink girls version of the game room too... but I cant think of what would be in it!) Either way, its uncomfortable in some respects. But, thats why Christ is with us... to have fun and shake us up so we can really enjoy what he has to offer.

At that point, I think I woke up. For those of you that know me.. 1) Im not the easiest person to wake up and 2) The air up there is awefully thin in the morning. I walked out into the gameroom and well... mine has all kinds of toys everywhere. My gameroom is filled with the effects of Chaos, Mayhem, and Entropy... I mean... Benjamin, Marion, and Zachary.

If thats the gameroom that *I* created (and my children repeatedly destroy)... the one God has designed for me ... well, I cant imagine! But, daily, I have to get up and let Christ lead me out into a rowdy, loud, and "abundant" life.