Episode #268 Spiritual Eyes for Troubled Times: Finding God’s Perspective on Current Events – Unforced Rhythms of Grace

Hey friend, it's Jen. Have you ever been overwhelmed by headlines? Natural disasters, political conflicts, social issues, pain going on in our neighborhoods, in our families, in the greater world. That just feels too complex to untangle. It can all feel so heavy.

So I'm guessing you're saying yes. I've sometimes been overwhelmed by all of these negative headlines. And that's what we're talking about today and the opportunity that we have to look at current events with spiritual eyes. What if the news cycle could become not just a source of information or anxiety, but actually part of our spiritual practice?

Now first I wanna headline this and say I think we have too much access to information. I don't think as human beings we're created to have all of this data about all of the heartache all over the world at our fingertips in the exact same moment. However, I also think sometimes it's not as much of a problem to have access to that information, but it becomes a problem when we don't know what to do with it. And so that's kind of the lens that I'm looking through as we're talking about this topic today.

I'm reading Richard Foster's Celebration of Disciplines, and he's talking about meditation and prayer as spiritual practices, postures to take as we connect with God and partner in what he's doing in the world and how he's transforming our own hearts and lives.

And Foster says that we have "a spiritual obligation to penetrate the inner meaning of events, not to gain power but to gain prophetic perspective."

Now, prophecy here means two things. It's the fourth telling of God's word. And so speaking, declaring what God says is true. And also it's the foretelling of God's word. So when God gives us supernatural divine insight to know in advance something that he is going to be bringing forth in the world.

Foster is saying that spiritual maturity isn't just about understanding ancient or biblical text, but it's also about noticing how God is on the move in our lives and in the world. And asking God for his perspective on what's going on in the world around us.

In Romans 12:2, Paul writes, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:2)

Part of this mind renewal involves including to see things from God's perspective not just through political or economic or social or cultural lenses, but through a divine lens. Not to confirm our own opinions, but also to seek God's heart on matters that affect our communities and the world. It's about prayerfully sitting with events. Seeking to understand the deeper significance, asking God to show us what is going on

Foster says that when we practice this form of meditation "progressively, we are taught to see things from his point of view."

Now, I don't care how big or small something feels, . I want to see it from God's point of view as much as possible. And so as we sit and we ponder and we ask God, we'll begin to notice patterns that we missed or to feel compassion where we once felt judgment. To see opportunities where we only might see despair.

I had a hard circumstance that I navigated recently. And it's not only my story, so I'm not gonna put it out here with all the details. But something that shifted my perspective was recognizing that in that circumstance I was in, it was an opportunity to worship, not just to get frustrated. It wasn't just me doing things and saying things in human to human interactions, but from God's perspective, there was opportunities for me to love. There were opportunities for me to be mindful of him, for me to notice his care for me in the difficulty and to be worshipful even in circumstances that were less than ideal. We get to approach that in small ways and in huge ways as we go about our days.

In John 16:33, this is Jesus talking, and he says, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

As we practice this meditation, we then get to ask God for guidance about how we can be salt and light in our decaying and dark world. We get to respond with faith. Sometimes that's in advocating, sometimes that's in prayer or in service. So we don't wanna pick up assumptions for ourselves about what this is to look like, but we can ask God to give us his perspective and to give us direction on how we're to respond with what he's showing us.

And so here's a question that you can take to God today:

God, what current situation are you inviting me to see through your eyes? Please give me some of your perspective and show me how you're calling me to respond.

Have a good talk.

And if you've been encouraged by this content, please share it with a friend and help them grow in their conversational relationship with God too!

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