A paper presented at the Christian Worldview Summit.

Thanks for this opportunity to be here and to share some of the insights that the good Lord has revealed to me. What can be more joyful than this!

It was only in graduate school in Concordia Seminary St Louis when I came across some books on worldviews. It was then when I discovered writings of two great missionaries Dr Paul Hiebert and Dr Charles Kraft.

What did I learn from them?

They taught, if you want to truly transform fellow human beings, it is not enough to change their behaviour, or even values. We need to change their worldviews. They way they see, perceive, interpret, react and respond to the world around us.

But then – what should we replace their current worldview with?

I would suggest… with God’s own wisdom. Where God’s wisdom is understood as God’s good and wise design for His creation and for His favourite creatures, namely, us, built into the very fabric of creation. God’s good and wise design!

We see it as our mission – to change people’s worldviews through teaching them God’s wisdom for all aspects of our lives.

Today I want to reflect on us. From 3 different angles or perspectives:

[1] on us as individuals, [2] or our most important relationships, and [3] on our workplace activities.

For each of these perspectives I would like to look at 4 things:

[1] our situation, [2] our problem, [3] God’s solution, [4] a future vision for creation restored.  

Then I will conclude with a few remarks.

[1] Us as individuals.

Us. You. Me. Every other human being that walks the earth.

What is our situation?

We live in this age where we have accumulated wisdom from previous generations. In the age of superabundance and countless opportunities and blessings.  

But… and especially in the West we struggle. We struggle with meaning and purpose, with our self-esteem, our worth and significance. We suffer from anxiety and depression. We are not in a good place. And that is not a problem for someone out there, we see it happening with people we love.

What is our problem?

It comes from how we see ourselves; like through broken glasses.

Who are we? What does the world tell us? Lumps of cells? Molecules and atoms? Bags of chemicals? Vertical emotional puddles?

If that is all, then… there really is no significance to our lives, there is no meaning, no purpose, no hope, no peace. At least not in any objective sense. And that bleak situation then leads to all the issues we struggle with.

Is there a solution?

O, yes, there is! To see ourselves as our God sees us.

How does the Lord of Creation see you? Let Him speak for Himself!

“I made you, I knit you together in your mother’s womb. I made you in my image and likeness. I placed you on this bountiful planet to be my representative. You are infinitely significant in my eyes. I have entrusted this planet and all the people in your life to your care. I have created you for great callings, for a meaningful and rich life, and you are very good in my eyes!” That’s you.

What is our vision for the world restored?

Imagine if we could teach this to parents and grandparents, if they could speak this beautiful truth to their children and grandchildren. If we can teach it in our schools, if we can equip teachers and principals to immerse our young ones in this goodness, how much would that transform their lives, how different their view on themselves and this life would be?

Spirit and wisdom filled people, secure in their identity, created in God’s Image, redeemed by the same God, destined to live forever to enjoy eternal glory and blessedness.

This is you! This is your children; this is your grandchildren. This is your loved ones.

[2] Our relationships.

What is our situation?

If something is in worse condition than our self-understanding, it is our relationships. The very fabric of the society is being torn apart – marriages, families, broken hearts, households, lives. Betrayal, unfaithfulness, promiscuity, violence… in abundance wherever we look.

What is our problem?

What is this? How do we see it?

Friends, partners? What do we think about sexual intimacy? “I see, I want, I do. It is all natural. I want to find someone who will satisfy my desires. It is about me, about my desires, my wants. And you, the other person, are simply a means to my desired ends.”

Is there a solution?

O yes, there is. To see our relationships as our God sees us.

How does our Creator God see our relationships?

Marriage. Family. This amazing institution, the only one given to us in the very beginning. The one which teaches us so much about holy God. Where we learn to love and serve one another as God loves and serves us.

Sexual intimacy… as an amazing gift of God to our marriages, where the culmination of our bodily satisfaction can at once become the beginning of a new life, a new human being. The one calling where we have amazing privileges entrusted – where we can participate in creation, where we can create a new life.

Where we can live out God’s design for our lives – men, fulfilling their longings for mission and sacrifice, women – their longings for love and relationships.

The one institution that has the mysterious power to transform our entire lives. Our marriage, our families.

What is our vision for the world restored?

Imagine that we were teaching this wisdom to our young ones since early age

If one of their biggest dreams was to one day have a marriage and family, and they would also be well equipped with Creator’s own wisdom for how to see that wonderful institution, how to prepare for it and how to live in it.

How different our lives would be, how different would our society be?!

[3] Our workplaces

What is our situation?

There is one more aspect of our lives where so many live in misery. Yes, the one where we spend the most of our time awake. Our workplaces.

What is our problem?

How do we see our work? Some as necessary evil to endure. As a drudgery to flee. As an evil to endure to get your money. No passion. No engagement. No commitment.
Others see it as the main source of their identity. As the altar of their happiness where everything else is sacrificed.

And if that is how we see our workplaces, how can we find our work satisfying?

Is there a solution?

O yes, there is. To see our relationships as our God sees us.

How does our Creator God see our workplace activities?

“I created you for work. The first instruction I gave to Adam and to humanity in the beginning was about work. I want to work together with you, I want to have you on my team as we together care for this wonderful creation and all people!”

Our work is part and parcel of how we continue God’s work of creation. It is how we participate in the First Great Commission: “Take care of my creation!”

This is how we grow, develop our talents, our potential, our creativity, how we participate in culture building, how we serve our God by serving our neighbours.

What is our vision for the world restored?

Imagine, if this is how we taught our children in their schools and universities, if this is how parents could prepare them for engaging and fulfilling lives.

How good would that be, how different would it make our attitude towards work, how much more joyful our lives and how much more creative and productive our service to our neighbours would be?!

That is what God’s good and wise design for our lives looks like.

Concluding…

But as we know too well… that is not what our lives are usually like.

We fail daily. As individuals, in our relationships. In our workplaces. We fail to live out the beautiful and rich life for which we are created. And even knowing God’s wisdom for our lives does restore us. We need help.

This is why our Creator God came as one of us. As Jesus from Nazareth.

To share our experience. Lived, suffered, died and rose again. To help us in our weakness, to free us from our slavery, to restore us in relationships with Him.

This is the Good News that we have received. It is Him, our Triune God, who again enables us to rediscover who we are, it is Him who with His Spirit enables us to strive to lead new lives, beautiful and rich lives for which we were created, it is Him who now begins and one day will complete our full restoration.

To this God be all the glory!

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, if you share the same vision, please, let me know if there is any way we could combine our efforts working for it.

Thank you!