On Becoming Spiritually Irrelevant

This Is Not Advice

Right now your world is one of unforgettable play. I imagine this tiny little toy lion sitting on the deck, protecting his “army” of corks.

What will you be when you grow up? Have you grown up already?

What superpowers will you have when you get there? What’s possible?

I want you to know that the world around you is creating an invisible spiritual engine that will make your work, your job, and your identity completely replaceable and irrelevant.

What you have now, you will never get back.

The world around you trusts (almost completely) the large language models to outsource not only your work, but your imagination.

My biggest fear is being spiritually irrelevant.

What I want you to know is the ability to think critically will ripple into eternity.

Do you think the team building the Sagrada Família thought about ROI?

Your ability to trust your love, your heart, and your “superpower” of feeling what other people feel, will ultimately be the most special thing you carry into the future.

You will feel alone, and misunderstood. But that’s okay. Saints have superpowers. They are superheros. They are real. You are real. You are a superhero.

You are a saint.

I’m so sorry that you now have to live in a world where you are constantly monitoring whether something was written by AI or a human being.

I am so sorry that you can’t trust what is in front of you. You have to constantly ask, “is this real?”

These aren’t tools to help you be more productive, they are spiritual scaffolding…a codependent relationship with yourself.

I am begging you. Don’t become a cog in the machine. Please don’t fit into an industry. Don’t commodize yourself. Don’t lose your humanity. Don’t identify deeply with the value you create in the world. Don’t find your identity in what you do.

Any time you think you have found your “why”, I promise you, you will immediately be irrelevant. It’s too much of a burden to keep up.

Inflation, a digital gold rush, and feeling the fear of keeping up with an ever changing world, so you don’t fall behind. I know this feeling well. It’s been my friend.

“My best friend is a computer” is the moment you realize you have died.

I just picture you as a small child, with a box of crayons.
Half of them are broken.
You’re staring at your best pieces of “art.”
No one wants it.
The magic is gone.
It’s all you have.

Why can’t I just draw things I like…and people like it?

There are ways to ease this pain as the world spins faster: Bitcoin. Living in a place that brings you life. Remote work. True friendships. Community. Most importantly, the Eucharist. However, these will only ease the pain.

Have some empathy. The entire world will believe that they need to attach their self-worth to their relevance.

“Be authentic” isn’t going to cut it. “Write your own articles” won’t be the breath of fresh air. “Just do what you love” is outdated. “Real life” won’t mean anything. It doesn’t mean anything now.

But if you are holy, and can stand in the spiritual void and feel deep consolation knowing that you are God’s precious child, you will be a light to the world.

People will be attracted to you. They will want what you have. They will look to you for answers.

Don’t let this get to your head. Look at this as a way to bring life into a lifeless world. But don’t you dare think your value is giving life to people. Being spiritually relevant isn’t the antidote.

You are 1 of 1 my friend. Let the world keep spinning. Let yourself get outside of its orbit. Remain in the void and feel God’s love for you. Not based off of anything you have done, but in the peace you feel knowing He has you.

You’re so gifted. Why are you using your gifts trying to live on the spectrum of “surviving” and “thriving”?

You have spiritual genius. But the world won’t recognize it. That’s why it’s real.

Jesus was a genius.

When they asked him to explain Himself, to justify His existence, He remained silent. The restraint He showed? He is an unbelievable spiritual genius.

So are you my friend. You can justify yourself. You are the smartest person in the world. You will always know right from wrong. You have critical thinking abilities that go beyond non-human intelligence. You carry the presence of a giant. You can read minds. You can feel what others are feeling. You have superpowers.

Yet, you don’t need to prove yourself to anyone.

It’s just you and Him. He looks at you. You look at Him. He tells you everything He knows about you. You are brought to tears.

This rhythm of suffering brings joy.

That thin veil between joy and suffering, of real and fake, of spiritual and material, is where you will find love.

Eternal love.

(Keep going. I’m so proud of you.)

-b