“We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us!” Abraham Lincoln
As we look at the unfolding disaster that is 2023, as far as we can see the cultural war rages; a hard-pitched battle between culture of life and a culture of death. When we turn on the news we are assaulted with reports of violence, hatred, riots, terrorism, and death.
We have people who are paid vast amounts of money to convince us we are a racist country built on the blood and sweat of slaves. They tell us the deck is stacked in favor of the wealthy ruling class and they convince the Black and Brown communities that they are, and always will be, the oppressed. The recent anti-Israel demonstrations are proof of the indoctrination of our children. They gather by the thousands, armed with a narrative but not with the truth. When asked about the facts, these young people embarrass themselves and the system with their ignorance.
Even nature batters us on all sides with one disaster after another. Taking all of this into account it is understandable that we grow weary of fighting an unending cascade of immorality, evil and death. Yet as Christians, we are called to live a joyful life, to be a beacon of light in our ever-darkening world.
In Philippians 2:14-16, God exhorts us to “Do everything without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and innocent, the sons of God without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the Word of life…”
As our culture grows further from God and His principles, as the world grows darker, becoming more chaotic, unkind and tyrannical, God expects us to have a thankful heart for we have received God’s unmerited favor instead of the well-deserved consequences of our sin.
When we pray, read the Word and share the good news we are showing love to a lost world, holding firmly to the Word of life and making priceless deposits into God’s kingdom.
The Gospel of Mark reminds us that where our treasurers are, there our hearts will be also. Once we reorder our priorities and choose to focus on the long view; once we have become eternity minded, the petty stuff of this world that tempts us to grumble and complain becomes unimportant.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7.
So even though uncertainty abounds and despite the darkening culture that surrounds us, we have every reason to live a joy-filled life because we are never alone – We are kept and nurtured by the Holy Spirit.
Each of us can make a difference in this world. We can be used by God to impact the eternal destination of our fellow human beings. What an amazing privilege!
Fret not thyself because of evildoers, be not envious of wrongdoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they will soon be cut down like the grass and wither as the green herb….For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the Lord upholdeth the righteous….But the wicked shall perish and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs; they shall consume into smoke shall they consume away. Psalm 37
Source: Shine Like Stars by David E. Smith, Illinois Family Institute; It’s Bad, Real Bad. Yet we Should be Thankful by Ray Cardello, CDN
