1 John 2:15-17 Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.
John 17:14-16 … (Jesus speaking) My prayer is not that you (God) take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.
Most of us have struggled this year, maybe all of us, with one thing or another. Sickness, death, lockdowns, depression, anxiety, frustration, worry, fear. You name it, we have experienced it in 2020. Not to mention a contentious election, divisiveness, anger, rage, bitterness, anxiety, worry, fear. Many similar emotional reactions. Much as I have tried to avoid being caught up in either issue, I am a human who likes to control her environment and therefore have fallen prey to the ugliness and sadness that permeates our world today. It has taken a toll on me. And I want it to stop…..now.
I remember that Jesus was aware of the pitfalls of humans getting too involved with the world and less with him. He knew we were “in” this world; it was where we lived. But he didn’t want us to be “of” this world, i.e., not to get caught up in the world and its influence. This world is only temporary. As Christians, we must realize it is not our real home. Our actual home awaits our passing. Putting too much stake in anything that goes on here is not for us. Ultimately God is in control. Sarah, definitely not.
Even if you are not a Christian, it helps to realize that leaders come and go. They are only human which means they are subject to the frailties, faults and “sins” of mankind. We are far from perfect, therefore do not expect perfection from anyone, especially our leaders. Our lifetimes, in the grand scheme of things, are fleeting. Twenty years from now will this matter? Months ago my husband said to me “Thank God we are old. We won’t have to stick around long enough to watch our country go down the tubes.” You may find that a radical statement but the power wielded in our Capital and some of the radical ideas that people there can come up with and then implement can dramatically change our lives and our country. The thought of putting up with the bs that comes from those in charge for 20-30 more years depresses me greatly. We must stop believing that they have our best interests at heart. They don’t. They have their own interests at heart, their own agendas. Enough about that.
My dilemma has been how to get out of the mindset that this is all terribly important. It isn’t. I need to be less “of” the world and more a reflection of God, my eternal father. The perfect one. The only one who truly has my back. If you know me you know that this is not an easy thing for me to do. I could stop watching the news, which many have advised me to do, but I am addicted to knowing what is going on. However, I have drastically reduced the amount of time I pay attention to it, on the tv or on my phone. I delete messages from both sides before even reading them. I look at Facebook less often and when I do, I go quickly past the political posts. This is a real challenge for me but one I must meet. The times have reeked havoc on my sensibilities, on my heart and soul. This is not what God wants for me. This is not what I want for me. I literally have no control over the virus or Washington, D.C. (except to vote, which I do) And the people in charge will do what the people in charge will do. Whatever works best for them. I will try to keep my head down and live my life, hopefully a meaningful one. Many in charge will continue to give in to greed, power, control, narcissism, self-indulgence. Now that I’ve bashed Washington, I want to add that not all leaders are “bad”. But all are human and therefore flawed. Let’s see how the next four years go. Praying it goes well. In the meantime, I’m going to read a good book. God bless.