“Some pastors preach boring sermons. Some church music is dull. But here’s the thing: If Jesus had been boring, the disciples wouldn’t have followed Him and the Pharisees wouldn’t have killed Him.”   ― John Hambrick

A survey of 2,000 British adults revealed the 50 most boring things in life. According to the surveyed Brits, the Top 10 are (drum roll, please):

10. Waiting in line at the post office

9. Sitting in a waiting room

8. The routine of everyday life

7. Watching television advertisements

6. Listening to politicians

5. Slow internet connections

4. Junk mail

3. Being on hold

2. Standing in line

1. Being stuck in traffic

I won’t bore you with the entire list, but other notable entries include “The Kardashians” (#14), rice cakes (#44), replacing the toilet roll on the holder (#49), and new mums on Facebook who constantly upload pictures of their baby (#28).

While I generally agree with the list (sorry, new mums!), I would suggest an additional entry: watching someone do a puzzle. 

Have you ever found yourself in that situation? Perhaps a group of family members or friends are hovered around a 1000-piece puzzle and there’s no room for you. Rather than play the elbow game for the next few hours, you step back, have a seat, and passively watch.

Boring. Painfully boring. 

Why?

Because puzzling is not a spectator sport. There’s no joy in silently wondering whether that blue, cloudy piece belongs on the border. Frankly, there’s no satisfaction in watching your buddy Jim connect two pieces of a tree. I may be mildly happy for Jim. I may smile and render a thumbs up from the corner of the room. However, I’m not going to throw a party for him and shout for joy. In fact, I’m bored.

I’m afraid “religion” or “going to church” would rank in a Top 50 list of boring things for many people. I’ve even had a few former students who admitted to me that they were not all that into going to church. Why? Because, from their perspective, church-going and church activities ranged from not very exciting to flat-out boring.

When you approach religion as a spectator sport, you’ll eventually become bored. You sit passively in your pew, listening to your preacher, the headlining act. You mutter a few songs and passively listen as others offer prayers. You don’t volunteer to host any events, teach any classes, or lead any activities, because you’re certain others are more qualified. Besides, you’re busy. 

Although you’re habitually at worship services every time the doors open, it’s a stretch to say you are actively engaged in worship or living your faith. You’re not a bad person. No one doubts that you love God. But you’re a spectator, content to watch other Christians build borders, connect trees, and solve puzzles. You may be worshipping in truth, but there doesn’t seem to be much spirit there (see John 4:24). As a result, your church life—your faith—feels kind of boring. 

If you find your faith isn’t all that exciting, let me suggest you may be doing it wrong. The remedy? Get involved! Find a spot at the table, rub elbows with other Christians, and help them complete the work of the church. My experience in ministry—in doing “churchy things”—has been challenging, frustrating, exciting, rewarding, grueling, life-changing, and many other things… but rarely boring.

Do you want to transform your Christian walk from an uninteresting stroll to an exciting sprint? Do you want to take to heart the words of Isaiah 40:31? He says, “but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” 

If that’s the kind of faith you want, allow me to bookend the above Top 10 boring things with a list of my Top 10 ways to break out of a boring faith journey:

10. Get involved in an outreach ministry. Mentor young people. Volunteer at a battered women’s shelter. Distribute food at a local food bank. Teach and encourage prisoners at the local prison. Do yardwork for elderly people in your community. Host a neighborhood Bible study. Serve meals at a homeless shelter. These activities will open your eyes to the needs of your community and make you appreciate what you have.

9. Teach a Bible class. Among many benefits, it will force you to get into God’s Word, and that journey is anything but boring.

8. Find a specific group at your congregation that you can minister to. Maybe you’re the gal who visits and makes meals for sick members. Maybe you’re the guy who keeps track of, stays in touch with, and looks for ways to minister to the widows in your congregation. Maybe you focus your attention on the youth, the singles, or the young married couples.

7. Seek out and try to greet every visitor who walks through the doors of your church building. The connection you make may be the very thing that causes that visitor to return. In the process, you may end up making a lifelong friend.

6. Be an active participant in worship services. Take notes, as if what is being preached/taught is worth remembering. (Hint: It is!) Sing out, as if your Lord and Savior is right there with you. (Hint: He is!) Approach each service as your last opportunity to praise God before joining Him in heaven. (Hint: It might be!)

5. Following a worship service, write encouraging notes to the preacher, song leader, prayer leaders, the audio-visual team, and others who led from up front or worked behind the scenes to pull it all together. 

4. Volunteer at your local Bible camp. Serve as a counselor, Bible class teacher, sports coordinator, cook, nurse, or in some other role. Being around young people and helping them build their faith will likely energize your own.

3. Go on a short-term mission trip to a third-world country. I promise you it will not be boring. In fact, it will probably fundamentally change the way you see the world. I have seen many lives transformed by a single, short-term mission trip. I’ve seen young people, in particular, return and say, “I get it now. I saw God at work everywhere. That’s what I want my life to be about!”

2. Seek out positions of leadership at your congregation, whether that be serving as an elder, a deacon, or leading a ministry. If you don’t feel qualified to lead a ministry, then contact the leader and become their most reliable, involved helper.

1. Pray, asking God to challenge you and open your eyes and your heart to the many opportunities for service around you.

Listen, friends: Never settle for boring. Life is too short for that and the stakes are too high. If your faith feels boring, it’s time to rediscover the wonder. As author Napoleon Hill puts it, “You must get involved to have an impact. No one is impressed with the won-lost record of the referee.” 

Don’t live a life that you will one day look back on with regret… “I played it safe. I never took any chances. I never went all-in for God. My spiritual journey was mostly boring.”

In matters of faith, never resign yourself to eating rice cakes while watching the Kardashians. In fact, I don’t suggest that even in matters unrelated to faith! A well-executed Christian walk will be exciting and transformational—not anything like being stuck in traffic. 

The above suggestions have the potential to not just make your faith “less boring” but to revolutionize it. An active approach to faith may leave you challenged, energized, or even exhausted… but rarely bored.