“When I have found intense pain relieved, a weary brain soothed, and calm, refreshing sleep obtained by a cigar, I have felt grateful to God, and have blessed His name”
Charles Spurgeon
We all find pleasure in different things. Relief and relaxation in a warm bath, a cool glass of sweet tea on the patio, perhaps a fine brandy or just a glass of coca cola. Our focus is not on the mere selfish enjoyment of things on this earth but soaking in God’s love for us in His creation. Enjoying the things made by our creator expresses our love for Him. We enjoy cigars and pipes. Other groups may enjoy other things, other hobbies, other pleasures, in which to elevate their spirits, relieve their pains, or calm their minds.
For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,
1 Timothy 4:4 ESV
After finishing his work in creation, God pronounced it “very good” (Genesis 1:31). This was not an anemic afterthought — Oh, well, it’s nice to be done with that — but a joyful recognition and celebration of accomplishment. As part of living life to its fullest, God invites us to join in the celebration, to enjoy and delight in His creation and all the gifts He offers us in it. These innumerable gifts come to us in many forms, including people, places, and things. “What gives me joy and delight?” This will differ for each of us, but part of loving God is to enjoy and delight in His creation and His gifts. Through any and every means possible, we seek to feast on the miracle of life with our senses.
When you think about a problem over and over in your mind, that’s called worry. When you think about God’s Word over and over in your mind, that’s meditation.
Rick Warren
Pondering the love of God is the central focus of our meditation. What makes meditation a biblical meditation is that it is “holy to the Lord.” We are not taking time off from God; we are drawing closer to him. It does not mean we necessarily spend the entire time in prayer or studying Scripture, though those activities may be part of meditation. Instead, contemplation means we are acutely focused on those aspects of God’s love that come to us through so many gifts from his hand. Scripture affirms that all creation declares his glory (see Psalm 19:1). We intentionally look for his grandeur in everything from people, food, and art to babies, sports, hobbies, and music. In this sense, contemplation is an extension of delight — we are intentional about looking for the evidence of God’s love in all of the things he has given us to enjoy.
So, for me, and maybe even you too, enjoying a cigar or pipe especially in community with other brothers and sisters in Christ as we meditate on God’s glory, grace and love, is truly a wonderful form of worship, and praise.
“I believe that many who find that ‘nothing happens’ when they sit down, or kneel down, to a book of devotion, would find that the heart sings unbidden while they are working their way through a tough bit of theology with a pipe in their teeth and a pencil in their hand.”
CS Lewis
