How Should We Then Live?

This is question that I have beeen asking myself all week. Our lecture this week was a video series by Francis Shaeffer, titled "How Should We Then Live?" Although it is set in the early 80s, and the setting reminds me very much of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," the content is outstanding. When you can see past the things that could very well be distracting and listen to what Schaeffer is saying, it blows you away. He teaches about How the world has come to have the mindset that we do, and the views that we hold regarding the world, universe, and God (or god, or non-god). He talks about our government, and the mindset behind the socialistic views that we hold and that we are moving towards, which is basically a Marxist view of life nad how life should "be run." Although it may sound good, giving to the poorer of our nation, where is our goverment getting its money? If they are going to cut the taxes of the "working man" so to speak, then who will they charge to kep up spending like they are? The wealthy, the money makers, the job creators of our nation. Stealing from the rich to give to the poor. Sounds good, like Robin Hood ya? No. If the wealthy have less, they will not have as many opportunities to create jobs and places for the 'working man' to work, therefore making them poorer, and even more dependent on the wealthier. so the government will have to take care of them, but where will they get the money? The government doesn't have any money! It will be taken from the rich, creative job creators. Where did this socialistic mindsest come from? Where will it lead? What sort of ideas helped fuel the fire for this cause? Can we see where this mindset has led in the past inother countries? Think about it...one person's idea has a consequence, whether we want to believe it or not.

So then, what do we do? How should we then live? What can we do to prevent this happening in our country, can we even do anything that will help in any way? What does God want us to do, where does he want us to go to make known that this is the state in which we are living our lives, even though most are ignorant about it and blindly accepting whatever the goverment and media feeds them? Be a megaphone for the information that most are turning a blind eye about. Influence whatever area or areas you can, because if you don't go out and inform people, who will?

John 16:33. "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. but take heart! I have over come the world."

"Jesus already won this war..."-Cool Hand Luke

A Moment to Breath...

Oh my goodness! The school has been so crazy. I have been so busy with reading, lectures, projects, and learning about what God. Oh he is so good! I have recently done a Worldview project, an essay and a presentation, with two other girls, and we just finished last week. Our presentation was about the New Age Movement, and what it looks like in society today. It was a really fun project, and I learned so much! All week I learned about the different worldviews that people in our world have, and how different they are from the worldview that I grew up with. It is so easy to think that everyone else thinks the same you do, when in reality, everyone is brought up in drastically different environments, and where and who we are born around help shape who we are going to be in our lives. Learning where people come from, what they were taught helps us understand them as people, knowing why they have the thoughts they do, which ultimately produce the actions that they take. This week we are studying a video series by Francis Schaeffer called, "How Shall We Then Live?" Even after the first day, it has been great! I am learning so much, and God is really working on my heart and stretching my mind. I am stoked about what else he has to teach me!

I was reading "Celebration of Disciple" by Richard Foster today, and he was talking about the spiritual discipline of worship. "To worship is to experience Reality, to touch Life. It is to know, to feel, to experience the resurrected Christ in the midst of the gathered community. It is a breathtaking into the Shekinah of God, or better yet, being invaded by the Shekinah of God.*
* "Shekinah" means the glory or the radiance of God dwelling in the midst of his people. It denotes the immediate Presence of God as opposed to a God who is abstract or aloof." To be invaded by the glory and presence of God...nothing could be better!