Are we going crazy?
It kind of feels like the world is going insane. I can’t remember a time in my twenty-seven years of life when there seemed to be this much turmoil locally and around the globe. Now, something I want to be VERY careful of is not to contribute to what I refer to as the “sky is falling” narrative that we are seeing so much of lately. If you have faith in God and believe in His story as I do; and to be honest even if you don’t, it should be pretty clear that this isn’t the first time the world has experienced chaos; WW2, slavery, the witch hunts, the black plague, the crusades, I think I’ve made my point.
The problem is we don’t seem to be handling these times very well however. That’s more than likely one of the few things most of us can seem to agree on right now.
But there’s good news…
I believe that we can and should have peace during times of strife and pain and chaos because God has revealed the end of the world’s story to us and it is a very happy ending, the happiest in face.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phill. 4:6-7
No matter what challenges and even evil we’re left to face in our lives, we can find peace and calm in God’s truth.
It doesn’t matter
Despite this truth we are called to live in the world but not be of it…(Maybe you’ve seen the “Not of this world” window stickers on the white suburbans driving around the gated communities and soccer fields. This is what they mean.) So here is my take on the American presidential race of 2016, Black Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, Melania Trump’s plagiarism, Turkey’s attempted coup, Hillary’s emails and the competency of the FBI, Taylor Swift and Kayne West, gun control and anything else we find ourselves fighting about from behind our keyboards: it doesn’t actually matter all that much.
I know, this sounds almost blasphemous but here’s my point: it’s not that in the moment these things don’t matter because they do. They affect us in the moment and sometimes for the months or years to come. Our problem, is that we’ve turned these issues into the most important things in our lives. And the simple fact is that there is always going to be plenty for us to be divided on. Even if we share the same faith or similar worldviews, we’re going to have plenty to disagree on. I disagree with my friends/ family/ coworkers all the time and I love them dearly.
Coexist?
So how do we find a way to, to quote another bumper sticker, “coexist” peacefully? I can only speak for those of us who claim to follow Jesus and call Him Lord.
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” Matt. 12:31
Jesus was very clear when asked what the most important commandments were. And he didn’t tell us to just love the people that are like us. The bottom line, is we could do a much better job of this, myself included.
And if we’re being honest with ourselves, when was the last time we convinced anyone of something via a Facebook post?
What we need to ask ourselves is what legacy do I want to leave? Jesus’s was of love and grace. I’m going to aim for that the best I can. Through all of this turmoil and pain as a radio station and local ministry we are going to continue to follow Jesus and love people like He did to the best of our ability. That is our only agenda.
John McCullough
Weekdays 6-8 p.m./ Sundays 4-8 p.m.