No this won't be a post about travel.(Not entirely anyway!)
I've found myself with an interesting new problem lately, it seems that almost everyday I am astounded by the things I see posted online in regards to political-related issues in our country. These have taken many forms:
- Outlandish, eye-catchingly titled news articles.
- Outlandish, eye-catchingly titled youtube videos.
- Facebook statuses by my friends and family.
And I wouldn't be surprised by this.....except...I kinda am.
I realized,(Whether this is is a good thing or a bad thing, i'm not sure of), that most of the people I'm associated with online are people who profess to be Christians. In fact, most of my online newfeeds are so filled with political rants, it all just sort of blends together and it's easy to forget that most of them are actually being written by Christians. Over the past week alone I've seen people, who I know and care for, call people idiots, call for violence, and even condemn a whole other nation of people. What is going on?
I think I know what's going on, and I can understand it. People are being captivated by the ever-increasingly changing world around them, and the hard-to-ignore disappointments of people in leadership. These things are upsetting. Even more upsetting when polarizing anger goes viral online. Anger is going viral, and we as Christians have let ourselves be pulled into it.
But that is not what we're called to.
We need to remember that this world is not our home. Our call in life is different. Our call is to live for Christ. Our call is not to live for the DNC. Our call is not to live for the GOP. Believe it or not, our call isn't even to live for the USA.
Live As a Tourist
Traveling is a blast. Experiencing new places, cultures, and food. It feels so liberating. You get to relax. And why is it so relaxing? Because you have detached yourself from your normal life. You don't have to worry about the problems at work, you don't have to worry about mowing the grass, nothing. You simply are embracing the new environment while you travel through that foreign land.
Here are a few ways I think we can better represent Christ by living like tourists:
1.) Remember that you are not home.
" If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." - John 15:19
You should not be surprised every time something crazy happens. This is a different culture than the one we are designed for. When you are abroad, you don't care as much about the political issues going on in that country, because it doesn't affect your reason for being there. You go into the trip with the assumption that "They do things differently here, and I may not approve of it all, but this is not my home.".
2.) Focus on enjoying the better parts.
" Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."- Eph. 4:29-32
It's very easy to get caught up in the hot button issues of the day that make us angry, but we know that isn't why we're here. When you go on vacation, you focus on the good parts of that country. When we went to Japan last year, we didn't run up to the Prime Minister's office demanding an explanation for why more precautions wern't taken to prevent Fukushima's aftermath. We didn't ask everyone we saw about Japan's issues with Whaling either. No, we took in the culture, and focused on new places and people. In the same way, we need to teach ourselves to focus on making progress for the Kingdom, rather than focusing on things that add nothing to it.
3.) Don't waste one second of the trip.
"you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes."- James 4:14
Your time on vacation is precious. You had to work hard, and save your money to make sure you could have what you needed to take the trip. When my wife and I were in Japan we made sure to optimize our time. We have hopes to one day go back, but you never know. With that in mind we visited over four cities in during the two short weeks. We wanted to make sure we saw every sight, visited every monument, and tasted every food!
The same is true for us on Earth. You have no time to waste while you're here. Getting angry over a political issue, or feeling like the world will fall apart because of some decision congress made, is useless. You were not put here on this planet to debate political issues. Christ' blood wasn't shed to redeem you, just for you to turn around and spend your life jumping from argument to argument. It's pointless. It's a distraction, a distraction that satan will use to drag you down into a dark descent. "It's A Trap!!!" Admiral Akbar is right, it is a trap, and one we don't have time for.
I suppose my bottom line here is this:
Yes, we are surrounded by a world full of political issues and problems. Yes, these issues do affect the dynamics of the society and culture in which we live. Yes, it is ok for us to care about these things. BUT, at the end of the day, if these issues were all you thought about, or if they controlled your emotions, then we have a problem. Don't lose yourself in the troubles of this world, because we know we have been called to be more. If we can learn to stop getting caught up in the viral-anger of this world, and start approaching it with the broader perspective of someone who is merely passing through, we'll all be able to more effectively glorify God while we're here.
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