Seeing the World

I don't think I am that unlike most Christians today. I love the Lord, try to serve Him, struggle with sin, etc. And, I tend to view the world as corrupt, ugly, cursed, evil and ruled by the Prince of the Air.  But lately, God has really been challenging my perceptions.

Please allow me to lay a foundation for my viewpoint.  I have always seen the love of God expressed int he world through the revelation of His common grace.  That is the beauty of nature, the warmth of the sun, the seasons, His administration of the earth, etc.  In fact, that is one of the primary reasons I enjoy hunting and fishing.  Those activities allow me to experience God's grace and reflect on it without the distractions of a totally man-made environment. (Ok, I realize that there is only one natural lake in Texas and that all the ones I fish are reservoirs, but they are inhabited by nature and I am not in a concrete jungle filled with noisy cars, just jet skis and boats, which is why we fish early and late... You just assumed it was because that was when the fish were biting!)  However, I now believe there is more to the perception of God's love revealed in the world than just these.

Psalm 8, 33 and 119 all mention that the world is filled with God's majesty, unfailing love and lovingkindness.  Psalm 8 and Hebrews 2 that man was made a little lower than the heavenly beings and in Genesis 1 that we bear in our essence the image of God.

When I read these things and reflect on them, I cannot but come to the conclusion that we are so very special and that God fills the earth with the presence of His love in relationship to us as the jewel of this creation to glorify Him.  So what good is it for me to recognize and focus on the evil in the world?  How do I effectively prepare my heart for love, especially love beyond myself, without recognizing God's love in the world.  This will take more than simply reveling in God's common grace.  It will take a conscious decision to look at creation, especially man, and see the love of God.

This understanding has the potential to revolutionize how I live the Christian life and view my own sanctification.  Ponder the verses in the passages I mentioned above and ask yourself if you see a world filled with God's love, or not?