Loving the view from here

Today is Valentines Day and it is also the birthday of my grandchild and nephew.

Happy Birthday to you both!

and

Happy Valentines Day!

I have been teaching English for over a year now. This gives me opportunities to share not only my American English words but talk about topics of mutual interest and current events. I ask the students to share their opinions and I sometimes share mine. But teachers are supposed to be neutral and not share a bias. That is something I respect because it annoys me when the news media is so obviously biased. So often I hold back during lesson time.

There was a time when reporters were a little more neutral and balanced, but not now. I would not call them journalists, but rather editors with strong opinions, evidenced by the adjectives these often use. What the rest of the world sees is the worst of the editorial snippets. If I get a question on a current event, then I must explain there is a lot more to the story than what was released to the international community. The USA news media never talk about good things happening in many places, only the worst items of the day. And those get a daily recap. I find myself becoming defensive and responding with things like, "but did you know about...?" I do have the chance to say that I watch news from other countries, and I watch some Christian news programs. I want the rest of the story to be shared. That brings me to the next point.

Groups have differing world views. I first learned about world views after reading the author Charles "Chuck" Colson. Mr. Colson, an advisor to President Nixon, was convicted in a scandal and went to prison. There he committed his life to God and His Son Jesus. After being released he began a prison ministry and wrote several faith-based books, one of which was made into a movie. I highly recommend his books. It was while reading one of his books, I realized I do not think or act the way some other people do because of my faith in God and Jesus. Christians have a faith-based world view. Other religions have their world view. But the opposite of believer's faith is a humanistic world view. You might also say agnostic or atheistic. These views refer to our origins such as how did we get here, where did we come from and where are we going? Agnostic means I just don't know. Atheistic mean against theism or against God belief.

I had a grandfather who was very well read and an agnostic for most of his life. He explained his position to me when I was a child. He was my dad's stepfather, but I considered him my grandfather. He would argue religion with my parents. Sometimes he and my grandmother would scoff at their church attendance and beliefs. He adhered to agnosticism until near the end of this life when he finally accepted salvation in Jesus. I believe my father had a positive impact on him. When the religious talk would start, usually by my grandparents to create discord because they enjoyed arguing, Dad always was respectful, polite and sometimes a little funny. The conversation on their side would be how churches want to steal your money and they are full of hypocrites. It was in their eyes the poor man's country club or social place. They belonged to a real country club. Dad would sometimes answer with "well if I am wrong then I will just be laughed at in the hereafter, but if you are wrong, you will have a problem when you get there." I would like to point out my grandfather had been assaulted by a priest as a child so I can fully understand why he was sceptical. I am sad to say, I really don't know if my grandmother was ever fully convinced, that she had a Savior.

To be fair I don't want to lump everyone into 2 categories. There are many levels of belief and differences of opinion about matters of faith. I hear some talk about being cultural Christians or being of a different faith. They like the idea of a moral lifestyle but just don't accept the Bible. Most of them have never read the whole book. (I would be interested in hearing from someone who read it all and still has a struggle with belief.) FYI, I have read the Quran and used to have a Book of Morman. While I don't claim to be a theologian, I have read the Bible and still do. I lived in Buddhist countries as well, and I studied a few other religions at various times. My way to be is to pray, read the Bible and ask God if I don't understand something. I also expect to get new revelation on my journey in this world as He is directing our paths. I expect to hear new revelation from those who preach. If they just give the same old message, I move on quickly. I know God is alive and speaking to his children daily. He speaks in His word, by giving dreams, words of knowledge, through prophets and endless other ways. After all He created everything.

I was once an agnostic like my grandfather. Then I met a group of missionaries. They shared the Word of God with me. More importantly I could see they were different. Their world view affected every aspect of their lives. One was a doctor who worked with lepers. Dr. Al Hood could have lived in the USA and made a lot of money, but instead he cared for the poor and outcast in a foreign country. That impressed me. One day he took my hand and asked me if I knew where I would go when I died. That made me so uncomfortable, but it gave me something to ponder. I decided I wanted what those missionaries had. I decided to follow Jesus and I have never looked back!  I don’t get everything right and I am not a super believer, but I have Someone to rely on to help me live this life to the fullest.

People ask how my husband and I could have left what we had always known and move to a place so far away, where we did not know anyone. We live by faith. We are both believers who look to God for direction as we journey in this life. It is a surprisingly wonderful peaceful way to live. We love our new home and all the new friends we are making. We still communicate with our family and friends from the USA as well.

We are...

...loving the view from here!

If you are reading this and in the "I just don't know" category, I urge you to read the Bible and maybe one of Chuck Colson's books. Don't just wonder, get some information. Also, ask God to show you He is real. You might just get a new perspective and a more encouraging world view.

Happy Valentine's Day!