Do you ever have those nights when you want to watch something and find yourself spending most of the time you budgeted for watching to scrolling through endless options? In terms of wasting time, scrolling may be the single biggest source of mindlessly pouring our lives away. No social media necessary, the scroll can take us to nowhere in endless variety. But that’s not the point of this post.

Recently breaking from the modern scrolling dilemma, we went old-school scrolling, and physically sifted through the DVD archives to find a movie to watch. It seems we’ve had the same scrolling issue for years, it’s just become more efficient with technology. We finally found success in our agreement to watch 2008’s Yes Man starring Jim Carrey and Zooey Deschanel. Stuck in a rut after a divorce, Carl (Carrey) finds himself at a motivational seminar in which inspirational guru, Terence, (played delightfully by Terence Stamp) challenges him to “enter a covenant” with the universe and say “yes” to anything asked of him. Of course, clever and cringeworthy hilarity ensue as Carl goes all-in on this strategy.

The moral of the story ultimately arrives as Carl discovers that saying “yes” to everything is not a great strategy but that “yes” is a powerful way of opening oneself to the possibilities of life.

Considering Carl’s pre and post-yes self, a curious revelation appears. One might think of his “yes” as a counterpoint to saying “no” to the possibilities of life but that’s actually not the case. Carl’s problem wasn’t that he said “no” to life. His big failing was not choosing. In his avoidance, indifference, half-heartedness, and bland lack of effort, he found himself mired in the middle of nothing in particular. His “yes” was an answer to the sloth that had seized his soul.

Yes, became a decisive antidote to the “I don’t wanna” that had thrown his life into a depressing journey to the bottom. He eventually discovers that even his “no” has power in this context because it is a choice, a commitment to a direction. In between yes and no, we find ourselves tossed about on the seas of life, blown to wherever the wind will take us. A resounding yes, or no, is a cure to half-heartedness and indirection.

Now, clear on the dangers of indifference and lukewarmness, it’s worth looking at the power of “yes” more closely.

Every day, invitations come our way. Invitations to go, to be, to do, to think. Many of them, we don’t even see. Most of them, we don’t respond to. Regarding the scrolling phenomena, consider for a moment how many invitations appear in just five minutes of swiping up and down on our phones. The vast majority aren’t worth responding to. But when we do, something happens. Now, we’re in motion. Our mind and energy move in a direction.

Moving beyond the scrolling, what other invitations might we be missing? Are there little voices whispering to us, calling us to something? Where might we bring the power of our “yes” to bear in response to the right invitation?

Much is written about learning to say “no.” No to commitments. No to distractions. No to the noise interfering with the right signals. There is much to be said for “no” but it’s real power is in allowing us room to say “yes” to the right things. “No” will always be about arresting momentum. “Yes” is about creating it.

This week, we celebrate Christmas, commemorating the great “yes” of a little Jewish girl from the first century assenting to a divine invitation. Mary’s Fiat, her “yes” changed the world. I wonder if that’s the kind of “covenant with the universe” Terence had in mind when he challenged Carl to open himself to the power of “yes.”