If you're anything like me you might be prone to looking at the current condition of our country with fear, frustration, contempt, and cynicism. It is pretty easy to do. The economy seems to get worse every day. The news is full of stories of children being abused and even killed by their own parents. Families are breaking apart every day. The culture is inundated with pornography and violence. If I kept thinking I am sure that I could list many more things, but I am sure that your mind is already filling in the blanks. It is all very discouraging and frustrating, and if we are honest it feels hopeless sometimes.

As Christians we seem to have a few different responses to this. Sometimes, we choose to just hide. We don't want the culture to affect us or our children so we detach from it completely. Another popular approach is to just bash the President and blame all the "liberals." This can be pretty easy to do. One other response that we all fall prey to is to just give in and let the culture influence how we think, act, and live. All of these response are wrong of course. Jesus told us to "go and make disciples." Paul told us to pray for those in office and submit to them. John reminded us to "not love the world or anything in the world."

Changing our negative responses to what is happening in our country might just start with changing our perspective. I read an interesting passage in Colossians this morning that is pretty cool.

5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

Did you catch that? The Gospel is bearing fruit and growing! Jesus is "building his Church" right here, right now all around us. I have a choice to make. I can sit back in fear, hide, and blame the government or I can take part in what God is already doing. It doesn't feel true sometimes. What we see with our eyes looks pretty bad. We need to ask God to help us see with His eyes. Remember the words of Jesus in John 4:35:

35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest.

Let us today "lift up our eyes" and see our county, neighborhood, and family the way God does. The Gospel is Growing!

Travis