Perspective

"The Lord is righteous in all His ways, gracious in all His works. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them. The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy. My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord, and all flesh shall bless His holy name forever and ever."  Psalm 145:17-21 (NKJV)

In the hour that I call out to the Lord in earnest, my soul quickens as I sense the weight of His presence and I'm reminded once again that I'm truly never alone. It's not a lack of attention toward me on the part of the Lord that leaves me feeling the loss of His presence, but mine toward Him if I ever feel alone. I remember that as a teen, privileged for a time to attend a Christian school, hearing words similar to this; "If you ever feel that the Lord has left you, turn around - He's right where you left Him. It's true. And I wonder how many countless times this has possibly been true of us in our life here?

The world, by the design of the evil power that temporarily rules over it, due to the infection of sin, constantly provides means of distraction. Whether it's wars, destitution, disease, lustfulness, need, or some other device, we're constantly invited to respond in one way or another. Worry, fear, envy, lust and others are all available to occupy our hearts and minds and usurp the place of our God's rightful first position and His prevailing occupation of the hearts and minds that He actually created for Himself.

As a species, mankind in the beginning knew the truth of his origin and His dependence on God's grace as God met him in the Garden of Eden. Since then much, but not all, of mankind has spent millennia separating himself from those truths and more in a vain attempt to hide himself from the light of condemnation being shown on his rebellion and to create his own truth. Unfortunately, those may one day discover that all of their efforts, no matter how cleverly devised, will fail them horrifically if they meet their end here unrepentant. What we think or thought we knew at that time won't matter if it doesn't align with the unchanging truth of God. Our cleverest arguments will obviously not bear up against it.

Our emotions can be so fickle, unreliable, and even destructive in their ability to lead us down wrong paths and to create stresses on our minds and bodies - things that can do us harm with no return of benefit gained as a result of them. Add to that mankind's propensity to succumb to his own vain intellect, pride and lusts, and we see the result around us in that much of mankind's hewing a wide path toward his own terminal end.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven."  Matthew 7:13-21 (NKJV)

This world as it is - terminally infected with the cancer of sin, will never satisfy beings created for far better things - the righteous and eternal things of God. Our dissatisfaction with the world contaminated by sin and the nagging desire for that one thing that finally brings us relief are birthed in us by The Lord God who created us for Himself and for the purpose of our relationship with Himself. Anything less will never satisfy us for long - certainly not the things of this corrupted world. And as was purposed by that desire instilled in us for The One who created us, nothing but believing and drawing near to The God of creation will truly satisfy that nagging desire for Him and His ways - Nothing. We were created to need The One who is all-in-all, - the complete fulfillment of all that is needed and beyond to those who love Him. Ponder that for a moment if you will. The truth is that everything that mankind has ever actually needed has come from The One True God who created him. God's preparation for the provision of mankind started even before man was created as God in His wisdom began the work of creation and He continues to deliver grace to mankind.

"Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness."  1 Timothy 6:6-11 (NKJV)

What I'm attempting to point out for consideration is a perspective different than the world's - one based on the truth of our beginning and continued dependence on God's will to sustain us. It's the truth of our creation and the purpose that the enemy of our God continually tries to waylay with distractions and distortions. A sin infected world, crippled by decay also produces calamities to test us and our faith in the God who gave us life. In fact all of creation, including nature around us, is suffering the corrosive effects of mankind's allowance of sin into it. What was once good in God's creation, as He created and declared it, is now corrupted and failing - producing calamities against the very inhabitants that God created it for and had intended to allow to rule over it. God gave mankind dominion, but mankind gave that dominion to satan when Adam chose to believe satan rather than God in one decision in the Garden of Eden. Mankind has been paying a price under God's anger ever since, with the worst yet to come for each human being that does not submit to repent and accept Christ as Savior.

"For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive."  1 Corinthians 15:21-22 (NKJV)

I believe firmly that God's economy is based on His own lasting eternal values and on those things that prosper us for the far longer eternity. I believe that His eye and first intentions are on those things - not necessarily our physical pleasure or comfort. In fact, those things can sometimes be opposed to the eternally beneficial work that He's attempting to do in us if our individual nature allows them to get in the way. What prospers us in God's economy are eternal things - things not necessarily seen, as opposed to temporary physical things. The things that God places a value on in His economy are many times at odds with the values of mankind in his corruption. I contend that truly grasping this is an adjustment toward gaining God's perspective - one that we really need to get and possess, and one that begins to open the door to understanding some deeper things about Him. The condition of our hearts is His primary focus and occupation.

If you're a student of scripture, you may know about the numerous promises that Our God's made to those who love Him as recounted throughout the history of His courtship of mankind in scripture. Most all of them, I have found, have a prerequisite to obtaining the benefit of them - something that we must do if we want to receive the blessing. Studying in earnest and taking all that He's said in context begins to give the understanding that those that love Him are never far from His mind or out of His reach and that His heart is tender toward them and also toward those who are down trodden. Our security is in our acceptance of Christ as our Savior and our compliance with His own heart and ways as evidence.

"Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."  James 1:27 (NKJV)

"Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord."  Jeremiah 9:23-24 (NKJV)

We're not serving a vengeful God who's waiting to crush us. We're serving a God who loves us dearly and desires to save those who are willing to be saved as opposed to those who are choosing for themselves to be crushed.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."  John 3:16 (NKJV)

I contend that if we are to know the truth of anything it must be found in God's love letter to mankind as He dictated it to those that He chose to write it down in scripture. The truth of anything is only what God Himself has declared and ordained and cannot be changed by man or any other force, because sovereign and omnipotent God Himself ... does not change. 

“For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob."  Malachi 3:6 (NKJV)

What we can know of truth for now is included by His grace to us in the pages of scripture. If we would know the truth, it's incumbent on each of us to search it out in earnest, consume it and digest it carefully toward our true understanding and knowledge of it, or potentially suffer from our ignorance of it.

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."  2 Timothy 3:16-17

I pray that our hearts and minds are constantly drawn to the truth that has stood unchangeable from before our beginning and that it's active and enabled in us now because of our earnest consumption and digestion of it - enabling the Holy Spirit's use of it in us toward our ongoing sanctification. This becomes true life in us as we relate to the One who's waited for us from our creation, to submit to turn and truly relate to Him, while walking through His own plan and design for eternity.

"He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?"  Micah 6:8 (NKJ)

“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good? Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the Lord your God, also the earth with all that is in it."  Deuteronomy 10:12-14 (NKJ)