The Well- Exploring The Writings of C.S. Lewis For A Time Such As This- July 20, 2022

Weather report from heaven: Sunny and bright with an abundance of light, and lots of singing and rejoicing. Scripture- “God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.”- Exodus 3:14 Insight: Through what lens do you see the […]

Written By Doug Hall

On July 20, 2022
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Weather report from heaven: Sunny and bright with an abundance of light, and lots of singing and rejoicing.

Scripture- “God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.”- Exodus 3:14

Insight: Through what lens do you see the world? I was grappling with that question today as a myriad of events were crashing together in my world, leaving me a bit off kilter. However, I realized the significance of the question I was pondering and its very real impact on my life, especially when at a crossroads like I was at this morning. The lens through which we view the world determines what we see. Our outlook can determine our outcome. So, again the question was put before me in a different light during my quiet time with the Lord.  Through what lens do you see the world?. As I mentioned yesterday, it is amazing  how many times an old quote can provide great perspective for a current situation. Then I remembered this quote from C.S. Lewis and it gave me a whole new perspective on how to answer the question I was grappling with.

Today’s quote by C.S. Lewis is “I believe in Christianity as I believe the sun has risen; not because I see it, but because by it I see everything else”  This quote helped me to recalibrate and look at my current situation from more of a biblical and eternal perspective than I had been. When we look at things through a Christian lens, it definitely changes the potential answers available to us. For example, if we look at things through a worldly lens, success is measured by money, power or prestige. But through a biblical lens, it can be measured by servitude, grace and mercy, love and forgiveness, and witnessing that leads to souls being saved. Obviously two very different outcomes. So, what changed? The lens through which I was seeing things. I changed my view from a worldly lens to a Christian lens. This led to a whole new perspective with unlimited outcomes. Fear and anger can be quickly replaced by faith and joy when we change the lens through which we are looking at a certain situation. We can still have pain because of the circumstances, but we can remember that the Lord’s joy is deeper than our circumstances.

 It has been said that most people either see everything in life as a miracle or nothing in life as a miracle. Through what lens do you see the world? When you look at the world, do you see lack or abundance? Beauty or chaos? Good or evil? Significance or desperation? One right answer or unlimited right answers? Do you see the beauty of God all around you, God in everything, or do you see the absence of God and the wickedness of mankind all around you?  If we look at the world through a Godly lens, we will most likely find beauty in the smallest of places, places where others may not be looking. God doesn’t give us all the same answers, but He does expect us to grapple with the same questions. Where is God? He is all around us if you know where to look. You can find him in a kind word or deed, a rushing waterfall or a dalliance of natural beauty such as two little hummingbirds playing tag in the air. The possibilities are endless as there is abundant beauty all around us. However, if we only listen to the media’s politically charged ranting or the hatred often found in social media narratives we may miss God’s beauty all together.

So, what lens do you see the world through? Hope and provision or scarcity and lack? Thriving abundance or a struggle for survival? Two totally different lenses through which to see the world, which will lead to two totally different perspectives and outcomes. The good news is we get to make the choice through which lens we see the World. No one else can make that decision for us. If we see it through the lens of God’s grand Creation, we are apt to feel more alive than we ever could have imagined! Much to my delight when I see life through this Godly lens, I feel immense freedom. Freedom even to see the beauty, once hidden, that is suddenly all around me. This world can be hard, and no one gets out of here unscathed. But we can make a choice of how we spend our time here. When we see God’s beauty all around us, miracles in every sunrise and sunset, the Universe working in supernatural balance and alignment, then we are much more likely to be happy people, who can help other people who may come across our path in life. On the other hand, angry people tend not to even think of how they can help others, but more so how they can merely survive another day on a doomed planet. So, which lens do you see the world through?

Prayer:: Father God, give us the power of perspective and help us to see the world through the lens of your beauty in the Creation that is all around us. Help us to be disciplined enough to look for you in every situation and every outcome. Help us to see endless right answers to the questions that inhibit us. We need your strength living in us and through us to accomplish better outcomes here on this earth. We pray for this in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.

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