How to be free from desire

Here's my article for June:

It's time for another football World Cup: which will be a cause for rejoicing for those who can't get enough of football and despair for those who have had enough of football!  I've mentioned previously about football chants but as well as adapting lyrics to popular songs, football fans also adopt songs as their own.

Famously, Liverpool fans sing “You'll never walk alone” from the musical Carousel; West Ham fans sing “I'm forever blowing bubbles”; Hibernian fans sing “Sunshine on Leith”; and Newcastle fans sing “Blaydon Races.”  Other songs transcend individual clubs and are sung by many fans, such as “We are the Champions” and “Sweet Caroline.” Another song in this latter category is “Freed from desire.”

When I was chaplain to the Scunthorpe United Academy, the U18s team would often play this song as part of their pre-match playlist.  This always struck me as slightly odd as although the the music and rhythm are invigorating, the wish to be freed from desire doesn't seem to be the best motivation for going into a competitive match!  I'm sure that it will be said many times during the World Cup that poor performances from teams are because of a lack of desire.

The song itself is actually a reflection of Eastern spirituality, especially Buddhism – that's the 'strong beliefs' referred to.  The singer's love has been freed from the desire for money, power and fame, and his mind and senses have been purified, unlike other people who just want more and more.  This seems to be similar to Jesus' teaching “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 5:19-20), and also to the apostle Paul's “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2).

However, the reason these desires should be avoided in Buddhism is because never-ending desires and cravings that cannot be quenched cause suffering.  Buddha taught that even the desire not to desire is in itself a desire, and as such a source of suffering.  Therefore the solution is to cultivate non-attachment to everything – including the idea that there is a permanent essence of anything.

In contrast, the Bible teaches us that the created world was good and that humans made it very good, because we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1 and 2).  We are created to be in eternal relationship with God, but humanity's sin has corrupted us and the world.  Therefore our desires are now not for God but for earthly 'treasures.'  The good news, however, is that through trust in Jesus' death and resurrection, we can be freed from those desires and enjoy the abundant, eternal life with God that we were created for.

image by Prawny from Pixabay

Attention, desire and character

Here is my article for October:

 Image by kp yamu Jayanath from Pixabay

There are many sayings that connect our choices with the consequences of those choices: how many of us were told as children when pulling a funny face, “if the wind changes your face will stay like that!”; or the slightly more logical “you are what you eat”?  I heard another recently that is much more profound: “what you give attention to, your heart will desire.” It is both a warning and encouragement: the things we fill our minds with will become the things we crave.

There are many benefits to modern media but one of the draw-backs is the constant stream of 'content.' No sooner have you finished one show or video or reel or article than the next one pops up. This means that sometimes we are exposed to a wide variety of materials (although the algorithms eventually narrow that down!) but it also means that we skip past 'uninteresting' content (i.e. normal life!!) trying to find something that gives us a dopamine hit. Thus the ordinary becomes boring and real life becomes drab.

The truth that what we focus on eventually shapes our character is one of the reasons that I maintain that Halloween is never 'harmless fun' but is always dangerous. To surround ourselves with decorations that celebrate and trivialise the forces of evil is to allow them to become influences on our lives. The mixed message of wicked, nasty or violent things being praised and rewarded with sweets is particularly dangerous for the impressionable young minds of children – ordinary life becomes boring compared with the exciting thrill of the darker side of the supernatural. But even for adults giving attention to the sinister forces will lead to an openness to further interaction with them and then a desire for continuing interaction. Hence the interest in witchcraft, Wicca, mediums, psychics, spiritism, ouija boards, tarot cards, horoscopes and other occult practices. All these expose us to forces that want to control our lives, but not for our benefit.

Knowing that what we give attention to our heart will desire, the Apostle Paul encourages us, saying “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). However, before we can do that we need “to be made new in the attitude of [y]our minds” (Ephesians 4:23), so we cry out with the Psalmist “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). Jesus, who defeated the power of the forces of evil on the cross (Colossians 2:15) and who promises life in all its fullness to those who follow him (John 10:10), offers each of us that fresh start, and as we pay more attention to him and his word, we'll find that he is the one we were desiring all along.