Your View Can Make All the Difference

Who doesn’t like a room with a view? When traveling and staying in a hotel, it’s ideal to be assigned a room with a spectacular view of the city you happen to be in. I’ve enjoyed this on a couple of occasions, but most of the time my rooms have had windows that looked out upon boring rooftops, a highway – or even a wall. The best thing to do with views like that is to keep the curtains closed.

In the world of work, one of the indicators of status within a company or firm is having a corner office, one with windows that provide a grand vista to inspire productivity, as well as a brief diversion to reduce the stress of responsibilities and deadlines.

 

Then there are those folks fortunate enough to have hilltop homes that present exciting panoramas of natural beauty, even glorious sunrises or sunsets. Views like those can have a powerful impact on our moods and overall perspectives on life.

 

But we don’t have to travel, earn picturesque work surroundings, or afford picture-perfect homes to possess a very specific view, our own window to the world. Because whether we’re aware of it or not, we all have a worldview that shapes our thinking, attitudes and actions. The difference is that unlike a hotel room, we choose the view; it’s not chosen for us.

 

Worldviews can be shaped by countless factors: family environments, education, vocation, economics, ethnicity, traditions, political leanings, religious and spiritual beliefs – or the lack of them. They can be influenced parents, teachers, professors, people we associate with, books we read, news media and social media. Regardless of how they’re formed, worldviews serve as the lens or filter through which we perceive and understand the world around us.

 

If you’re at the gym, a restaurant, church or even at the mall and hear people engaged in conversation, it’s likely you can soon get a sense of what their worldview is. It’s not a question of whether we have a worldview – it’s a matter of what it is and how it affects how we approach life every day.

 

Sadly, many churches, pastors and even some Christian colleges and universities have allowed social and cultural shifts to impact their beliefs about God, the Bible, Jesus Christ, and how we relate to the world around us. John G. West’s book, Stockholm Syndrome Christianity, offers surprising, even shocking insights about this.

 

So, as followers of Christ, what does this mean for us? There’s a temptation to let what we see in the news, opinions of commentators, posts we read on social media, and the perspectives of folks we spend time with to become our worldview-shapers. But I’m convinced the Bible – as the Lord guides us to understand it through the Holy Spirit – should be the primary factor for developing and maintaining a worldview through which we can honor and serve Him.

 

To prepare Joshua to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land, God gave him these instructions: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:8). 

 

Granted, at the time Joshua did not have the Bible as we have it today – 39 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books. All he had were the writings of Moses, now referred to by theologians as the Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Even in those holy writings, however, Joshua had a clear understanding of God’s purpose and plans, His character, and His expectations for the people who were made “in His own image” (Genesis 1:27). The Lord had provided everything Joshua needed to serve as the new leader of the headstrong, often rebellious Israelites.

 

Exhorting his young protégé, Timothy, the apostle Paul also emphasized the importance and centrality of the Scriptures both for everyday life and for the life to come. He stated, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 

Timothy also didn’t have the entire Bible as we have it today, but he had the Old Testament, what Jews call the Torah, along with Paul’s God-inspired correspondence.

 

If the Scriptures were so valuable to Christ followers centuries ago, and God’s people thousands of years ago, shouldn’t they be equally prized by us today? I’m reminded of the famous quote by C.S. Lewis, a one-time atheist who eventually found faith in God irresistible and indispensable. He said, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: Not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

 

In essence Lewis was saying that his “worldview” was founded upon Christianity as revealed in the Scriptures, helping him to interpret practical aspects of life as well as spiritual realities, being able to see God and His hand in everything he encountered.

 

We have an important question to ask ourselves: What has defined – and continues to define – our worldview? Do God and His Word have any role in that? Do we make it a practice to read, study, meditate on and memorize the Scriptures, or do we possess what one contemporary Christian song calls “a dusty Bible,” neglected and even forgotten on a shelf somewhere?

 

If our worldview is shaped by what we see on the evening news, what some agnostic professor taught us years ago, the latest bestseller, or “The View,” maybe it’s time to reassess what we truly believe and why we believe it. Our only certain source for seeing the world as God sees it is the Bible. As King David observed, drawing from a storehouse of experience, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).

Winning the Ongoing Battle for the Mind

“A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” That popular advertising slogan of years past still rings true today. What we think, how we think, and the things that fill our minds make a tremendous difference in how we conduct our lives and what we experience: Our successes, failures, and attitudes.

 

I’ve heard many experts make reference to a “battle for the mind,” and there’s little doubt such a mental tug-of-war exists. Consider the potential influences: We have social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and new entries almost every week. Then we have TV – network, cable and the many streaming services that are emerging – not only the news and commentaries, but also the “entertainment” that shapes our culture and worldviews.

We have a plethora of print media, not only local and national newspapers, but also magazines designed to appeal to any interest and taste. A casual glance at any of them can reveal the values and biases they espouse. Even video games, literally at our fingertips, can have a significant impact on our minds.

 

The political scene has become so sharply divided it’s often hard to believe opposing parties are talking about the same things. It seems increasingly difficult to find common ground for civil discourse. And in many of our colleges and universities, the curricula for many disciplines are infused with political ideology. So yes, we’re engaged in a fierce battle for the mind.

 

What are we to do? Attempting to debate or reason on social media seems pointless. We can protest in different ways, but even how those are understood and reported can be distorted. I sometimes write letters to the editor, but I’ve yet to hear anyone say, “Wow, after reading what you said, I’ve changed my thinking entirely.”

 

I’ve concluded that even though I can’t control the way the world thinks, I can prevent it from controlling and molding the way I think. I like what the late Indian leader and human rights activist Mohandas Gandhi used to say: “I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” What a vivid image!

 

The Scriptures have much to say about what we allow to influence our minds. Romans 12:1-2 speaks powerfully to this: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind….” I like the wording from one paraphrase of this passage: “Don’t let the world press you into its mold.”

 

Years ago I became convicted about the types of books I was reading. Some were in the genre of horror fiction, and while I found those entertaining, I had to admit they were taking my mind into realms of the occult and evil that were not healthy. When I asked my pastor about them, he wisely replied, “Well, when you read those books, are they pointing you toward the Lord – or away from Him?”

 

Exhorting believers in the church at Philippi, the apostle Paul expressed his concern that they also needed vigilantly keep their minds focused in the right direction: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – thing about such things”(Philippians 4:8).

 

This doesn’t suggest adopting a Pollyanna attitude, ignoring negative influences around us, but making certain we don’t let them dominate our thinking. As an old friend of mind used to say, “I can’t stop the birds from flying overhead, but I can keep them from building a nest in my hair.”

 

Perhaps King David shared this concern about the “battle for the mind,” because in one of his psalms he asked and answered his own question: “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:9-11).

 

Another resource the Lord gives to ensure our thinking is clear and right is the counsel of other trusted friends and colleagues. Proverbs 19:20 says, “Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.” And if we don’t? Another verse offers this warning: “Stop listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge” (Proverbs 19:27).

 

The battle for our minds is real; it will continue, whether we like it or not. But God has given us the means for remaining on the victorious side. We just need to take full advantage of them.