Theology and the Nightly News

I watched the national news tonight for the first time in a long while, and it made me heartsick. Admittedly, the news is usually full of terrible stories, but it wasn't necessarily the stories that affected me so much as the way I felt myself responding to them. The first report was on the new economic stimulus package and I listened as pundits from both sides argued the pros vs. the cons and I felt myself having this visceral reaction to the worry of my fiscal future... and it scared me. Why am I feeling this way about meaningless monetary troubles? Don't misunderstand me, I am not apathetic towards this current situation and I certainly empathize with people who have children and a mortgage and have lost their job, but as a christian why am I worrying?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matt. 6:31-34

The stories that followed only added to my fear for this world and my longing for the next; the California woman with 14 kids, including preemie octuplets, who may soon lose her house because she has no job and cannot pay her mortgage, the woman brutally attacked by her friend's pet ape, a 13 year old boy in Britain who's parent are using him for profit because he fathered a baby with a 15 year old girl. Honestly, it confuses and hurts me, and the world we live in is dying.

For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. 1John 2:16-17

On the right side of this page is an area where I attempted to humorously tell you about myself, for a second I want to be very honest about who I am. Sometimes I walk outside at night, maybe to take the dogs out or move the car, and I look up at the stars for a few minutes. I think to myself about how beautiful they are, so simple and sparkling, and the distance that exists between me and them and how I know that God created them for his pleasure and that he knows each one of them by name. Eventually my thoughts turn to Him and me, and how like those stars he somehow finds beauty in me because He created me for His pleasure. I say this because I know I am finding my pleasure and purpose in the things of this world. My job, my bills, my desires usually come before the fact that I want to please my Father who loves me and His Son who gave himself for me.

I watched the news tonight to catch up on current events and to just get informed, and ended up having my eyes opened to the state of this world and the daily realization that it is dying, decaying, and lost and there is no time to be focused on it, but rather I should seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness first.