Exploding World

 

 

We live in a world that has seen more change in the last two hundred years than men have known throughout all the preceding history.We have moved from candles to lasers, horses to Ferrarris, quills to computers, spears to uzzis, bloodletting to MRIs, and so many more changes that it defies the imagination to even mention them all. We should mention telephones, MP3s, cell phones, air conditioning, space travel, and so much more that has become the norm for our day.

We spent a year in the Philippines in 1994. The contrasts indicated that change was on the move in that country. A person had trouble getting a telephone in the house or business, but nearly everyone was walking around with a cell phone. Ox carts were common as were Toyotas, BMWs, and all kinds of cars.

This is a day of change and we need to recognize that in our outlook on reaching the world with the good news of the Gospel. We need to be a part of the explosion that is taking place throughout the world.

China and India have become economic leaders in Asia as well as throughout he world. We may complain that we can only buy goods from overseas in our stores while the change in sources has contributed to our economy in a positive way. It has inconvenience some who have to retrain and find new jobs, but wouldn’t it be terrible if there were not new jobs for which to train.

We spent some time in South Africa. We went soon after apartheid had ended. We did not like apartheid and were very glad that there had been sanctions that had helped to end the practice of separating and persecuting people. We did have people in our church who were in businesses that had been affected by the sanctions. With apartheid ended they were ready to do more business, but we heard them saying that their business would be with the countries which had not imposed sanctions on them.

It was not easy to hear them saying things like that, but we listened and then we loved them and tried to ignore their bitterness at the sanctions. We did not say to them, “You should understand that the sanctions got the job done.”

We are trying to reach countries where we have been silent through some very serious mistreatment by Westerners. We are fortunate that they let us come in spite of the mistreatment by some.

There are serious gaps between rich and poor in many of the countries of the world. We have been in churches where there are members who have very nice vans and drivers to drive them around while there were many more members of the same church who could not afford to buy the oldest cars available. We can’t correct the inequities, but we can treat them all with love and respect and pray that a rising economy will benefit the ones who have so little.

We have a glorious message to carry with us. We must never forget why we are there and lose sight of the change that the Gospel can bring. Many times coming to know Christ will put a new spring in the step of a believer and with that change will come a new desire to produce and be a fantastic citizen of the country. It would be great if we could give the ones who are better off a vision of helping the others by presenting new jobs, new opportunities, and new hope for the future of the others who have such  great needs.

It is great to live in an exploding world. It is a world that is full of problems. It is also a world that is full of potentials. Every person faces the problem of eternity and what it will mean. We go with an answer to the most important question faced by all. When that is settled it is amazing how the peace of God rules over the direst of circumstances and tomorrow is a much better day than today.