I know I'm dating myself with this graphic of Jefferson Airplane before they became Jefferson Starship, but let's talk about fun. A three letter word that will collect an assembly of responses no one could possibly catalogue. One person's fun is another person's anathema. We have expressions that have surfaced to apply to types of fun such as "good, clean fun", but even that particular description suffers by comparison in the minds of different populations.
Fun is definitely a subjective experience. While the overall assumption is "fun" must be synonymous with enjoyment, again what I might consider fun, you wouldn't care to embrace.
Some people consider skydiving or scuba diving or cave diving tremendous fun. Others consider a trip to the Guggenheim Museum or Death Valley the ultimate fun adventure. And still others find a fun "trip" to consist of taking a hit of LSD. Huge margins of difference for the definitions of fun.
Let's also admit that some fun things fall under the category of sin, another three letter word. No one wants to think of fun as sin, but it can be. I can attest to that. And if sin wasn't fun, who would do it?
The above picture depicts a time of chaos and rebelliousness couched in "fun". Rock and roll reigned. "Love" children played with drugs, alcohol, and each other. Dabbling in that kind of fun or immersing oneself in it could have catastrophic results, but still young people indulged themselves in the free love party heard round the world - at least in the USA and Europe, particularly Great Britain.
The repurcussions of "fun" that encompass sin carry over into the aftermath of the experience. We can't always be young and dumb and let fun consume us. Even fun gets boring. And it isn't really the same kind of desirable when youth leaves us behind. Sin requires a reckoning. No doubt about that. Either here or in the afterlife. Our choice.
So. Fun times reside in memories or the present tense, ill-defined in general, but specific for each one of us. Some of us have mixed our fun with sin on occasion and straightened out those issues with the Lord. Others party on with sin-centered fun. What happens when fun times aren't so fun anymore?
The ultimate option? Jesus Christ. He brings a special, very real definition to fun times.
Jesus, you define every good and perfect gift, and you are definitely fun. Thank you for that. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.