A Lesson From my Blueberry Bushes

I planted six different types of blueberries this year. After testing our soil, I realized it was defficient in everything. We added pete moss, pine needles, and a host of other things to the soil before planting them. After all the work of planting the bushes, I had to pay close attention to when they needed watering. I did this in hopes of them producing blueberries.

My little sister said to me the other day, "When we planted those bushes, we had to wait a long time before we got to have the blueberries." I agreed with her and explained that it's that way in all of life.

Often we work hard and do not get anything back right away. Even in doing kingdom work, you may not see the results until Christ returns. We must preach the gospel without losing heart. We may not get to see the results of our witnessing, but we are called to be faithful. We should share the gospel out of obedience to Christ and love for Him. We can rest assured that His word will accomplish His purposes.

"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary."

 Galatians 6:9

What is a Biblical Worldview?

Suppose that you are going to take a trip to Hawaii. As you are seated on the plane, you introduce yourself to the passenger next to you who looks nervous. He replies, “I'm sorry if I don't seem very friendly. This is my first flight, and I don't like heights. Would you mind if we closed the shade on the window?” You smile and politely pull the shade. While preparing for takeoff, a voice over the intercom announces, “This is your pilot speaking. Can anyone tell me how to get to Hawaii? I can't find the compass on this thing. Since I've never been in a plane before either, I could use some help figuring out what all of these buttons are for.” Upon hearing this announcement, only a lunatic would remain in his seat. It is essential to have an experienced pilot in order to first make it off the ground, and then arrive at your destination. If the person next you had never been in an airplane before, it would have little effect on you. However, it would matter immensely if your captain had never been in a plane. His lack of experience as a pilot would affect his choices, everyone else in the plane, and your destiny. Many people think that their beliefs are irrelevant, but all beliefs have consequences. They affect our choices, they affect those around us, and they affect our destinies. Our beliefs are not just a passenger in the mind; they are the pilot of the entire body. Having the right beliefs is vital because our beliefs will determine the course of our lives.

It Matters

What we believe matters, but how can one know what to believe? There are many different belief systems, but the Bible alone is consistent with itself and reality. Author Susan Schaeffer Macaulay compared the search for truth with finding the right key to a lock. She recounted a time when she had a large ring of keys and needed to find the correct one for the door that stood locked before her. Mrs. Macaulay explained that just as only one key fit the lock, only one belief system fits the facts around us. The Bible gives the philosophy and explanation of life and truth that fits reality. The Bible offers the key to understanding the past, present, and future. It explains creation and its purpose and reveals why pain, disease, and death exist. It accounts for why we have a sense of right and wrong. The Bible also offers a living hope¹ for mankind and provides truth to guide us through life. The Bible contains the only correct belief system.

Worldview

Another word for a belief system is worldview. Francis Schaeffer said, “No man can live without a world view; therefore, there is no man who is not a philosopher.” Everyone has a belief system even if they do not believe in a god. A worldview can be broken down into what one believes about seven basic categories: truth, God, origins, man, purpose, morality, and destiny. Hence, a biblical worldview is viewing all of these areas through the lens of Scripture and letting the Bible govern one's beliefs. In order to understand what a biblical worldview is, we must answer the question, “What does the Bible teach us about each of these topics?”

Truth

Every worldview begins by laying the foundation for truth. By necessity, a Biblical worldview begins with the belief that God is the source of all truth, and that truth is revealed to us through His Word.² God cannot lie, so His Word is true.³ Thus, truth is not relative or subjective to our opinions. God's Word helps us to discern what is true and provides direction much like a compass does. It would be impossible for a pilot to navigate without a compass. Likewise, it is vital that we rely on God's Word in order to discern truth. Understanding where to acquire truth lays the foundation for the entire Biblical worldview.

God

What is a Biblical worldview of God? Having established that Scripture is God's revealed truth, we should investigate what Scripture teaches about God. However, this does not prove to be a simple task. God is eternal,⁴ and it is difficult for finite man to understand and explain a being who is infinite. While it is not possible for man to know God as God knows Himself, God has revealed Himself to us in His Word and we can know Him to the extent that He has revealed Himself in Scripture and through His Son.⁵ Not only can we know about God; we can know God Himself and have a relationship with Him.⁶ What He has revealed to us in His Word is sufficient for life, faith, and practice.

We learn in Scripture that God is independent from everything and does not need anything to sustain Himself.⁷ He is unchangeable and eternal.⁸ He is omnipresent (in all places), yet He cannot be contained by space.⁹ He is immortal,¹⁰ invisible,¹¹ omniscient (all-knowing), and wise.¹² He does not have a body but is spirit.¹³ He is truthful,¹⁴ faithful,¹⁵ good,¹⁶ and holy.¹⁷ He is righteous,¹⁸ jealous,¹⁹ sovereign,²⁰ and orderly.²¹ He has wrath towards sin and demands a payment for it.²² However, He is merciful, patient, and loving too, and He offers salvation to all men.²³ He is omnipotent (all powerful), free to do all His holy will;²⁴ and He is perfect.²⁵ He is blessed,²⁶ beautiful,²⁷ and glorious.²⁸ God is three persons in one: each is fully God, and there is only one God.²⁹ Although man has tried to use language to describe God, there are no words that can fully explain Him; He is indescribable. A Biblical view of God is that we cannot know God fully, but we can know Him personally as much as He has revealed to us in His Word and through His Son.

Origin

What is a biblical worldview of the origin of the cosmos? Many theories exist, so we must rely on our “compass” to guide us through the philosophies of this world. The very first sentence in the Bible says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”³⁰ We also read that without Christ nothing was made.³¹ All creation has its' origin in God. It is important, however, to clarify that God did not create sin. God's creation originally existed in a perfect state. All that He made was good, but because man sinned, creation was subjected to futility.³² This is the reason that pain, disease, and destruction are rampant today. The evil in this world is not a result of God's actions. Evil entered the world through man's disobedient choice. Scripture is clear on the origin of the cosmos, and the biblical view is that all creation originated from God and was originally perfect.

Man

What does the Bible teach us about man? We learn four basic things about man from Scripture. First, man was originally created perfect in the image of God. The Bible says, “...all that He had made... was very good,”³³ and, “God created man in His own image.”³⁴ Second, when man sinned, all mankind was doomed to death. In Romans we read, “all have sinned”,³⁵ “the wages of sin is death”,³⁶ and “...by the transgression of the one the many died.”³⁷ Third, man can still be redeemed. Jesus said, “In Him we have redemption through His blood”³⁸ Fourth, even when man is redeemed, he will still struggle with sin until he is made perfect when Christ returns. In First John 1:8 we read, “If we say that we have no sin we are deceiving ourselves....”³⁹ A Biblical perspective of mankind is that he fell from his original perfect state; he is doomed to die; he can be forgiven; and once he is redeemed he will not be made perfect until Christ returns.

Purpose

What is the purpose of creation? This question has been asked for ages because we all want to know why we are here and why everything else exists. Everyone longs to have meaning and purpose. In desperation some have tried to create their own purpose, but a purpose must come from a creator. People can only have purpose if they were created intentionally. Similarly, one can only know his purpose if his Creator reveals it. Once again, our compass is a vital tool for discovering what we were intended to do. Scripture teaches that God made all things for His own glory.⁴⁰ It is true that God does do things for our sake,⁴¹ but the ultimate reason He does anything is for His own sake and His own glory.⁴² If man's purpose is to glorify God, the question we are left with is, “How does one glorify God?” Jesus said that if we love Him we will keep His commands,⁴³ and that the Father is glorified when we bear fruit.⁴⁴ We glorify God when we obey His Word. A Biblical view of creation's purpose is that everything was created for God's glory and that we can glorify Him by submitting our lives to the teachings in His Word and bearing fruit.

Morality

How can one decide what is moral or immoral? This is the question of right and wrong. The Bible teaches that right and wrong do exist. Wrongdoing is synonymously called sin in Scripture. The book of First John tells us that all unrighteousness is sin, and sin is lawlessness. Hence, sin is any transgression of God's Holy Law. While sin is lawlessness, it is not merely lawlessness because according to Romans 5, sin existed before the law was ever given. Sin is anything that is contrary to God's character.

Galatians 3:24 teaches that God's laws were given to reveal our sinful state and point us to the perfect God who is the only One able to save us. The law was not given to be kept, for it had already been broken before it was revealed. Rather, the law was given to show us that we have broken it, that we are not like God, and that we need the power of the Spirit to obey His commands.⁴⁵ The Bible also teaches that we know right from wrong in our consciences.⁴⁶Therefore, we are held responsible for our sins. Since the beginning, man has made excuses for his sin because of his pride, but God will not excuse man's sin unless he is covered by the blood of Jesus. A biblical worldview of morality is that right and wrong are determined by God's Word, and man will be held accountable for his actions because his conscience tells him what is right and wrong.

Destiny

A Christian's view of eternity and destiny varies from all other religions, in that salvation is a gift of God that cannot be merited. In Isaiah 53:5 we read,“He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.” Salvation is received through repentance and faith. In Scripture we learn that without repentance we will all perish.⁴⁷ Ephesians 2:8-9 teaches us that we are saved by grace through faith and not our works. Once a person is saved, they pass from death into life, become a new creature, and are sealed with the Spirit. Salvation is initiated and sustained by God's power, and one cannot lose it.⁴⁸ Only those who have trusted Christ will enter heaven. Acts 4:12 teaches that salvation is explicitly found in Christ.

If salvation is a free gift to those who exercise repentance and faith in Christ, what happens to those who do not obey the Gospel? The Bible teaches that God has planned a day in which He will judge the world through His Son whom He appointed.⁴⁹ On this day, He will say to the unbelieving to depart from Him into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.⁵⁰ In Matthew 13 we read that God will throw those who commit lawlessness into the furnace of fire, and in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Both hell and heaven are eternal and once in either place you cannot pass to the other according to Luke 6:26. A Biblical view of destiny is that those who repent and exercise faith in Christ will spend eternity in heaven with Him because of His blood, and those who are unbelieving will perish in their sins and spend eternity in hell.

Conclusion

All areas of life are influenced by our worldview because our beliefs are the pilot of our entire body. Our beliefs about truth, God, origins, man, purpose, morality, and destiny are important. They affect our actions, those around us, and our destinies. The more biblical a Christian's worldview, the more equipped he will be to carry out the Great Commission, understand the world around him, discern the will of God, and ultimately bring glory to Him. God has not left us without a compass to try to figure things out on our own. He has given us His Word to show us the way to salvation and to help us know His will. Having a biblical worldview is to view the world in truth and actuality because the Bible is truth. May we be as the Bereans who tested everything against scripture,⁵¹ and may we accurately handle the Word of Truth.⁵² Soli Deo Gloria.

Supporting Scriptural References

¹1 Pt. 1:3

²Jn. 14:6, Jn. 17:17, Ps. 119:160, 2 Tim. 3:16

³Heb. 6:18, Num. 23:19, Tit. 1:2

⁴Psalm 90:2

⁵Ps. 147:5, Ps. 145:3, Rom. 11:33, Is. 55:9, Col. 1:10, 2 Pet. 3:18, Matt. 11:27, Deut. 29:29

⁶Jn. 17:3, 1 Jn. 5:20, 1 Jn. 2:3, Gal. 4:9, 1 Jn. 2:3, Phil. 3:10, 1 Jn. 4:8, Jer. 9:23-24

⁷Acts 17:24-25, Job 41:11

⁸Ps. 102 :27, Mal. 3:6, Jas. 1:17

⁹Ps. 90:2, Job 26:36, 1 Kgs. 8:27, Isa. 66:1, Acts 7:48

¹⁰1 Tim 1:17

¹¹Jn. 6:46, Jn. 1:18, 1 Jn. 4:12, Ex. 33:21-23

¹²Job 37:16, Rom. 16:27, Job 9:4, 1 Jn. 3:20, Heb. 4:13, Job 28:24, Rom. 11:33

¹³Jn. 4:24

¹⁴Jn. 14:6

¹⁵Deut. 32:4

¹⁶Ps. 34:8, 100:5, 106:1, 107:1

¹⁷Isa. 6:3, Ps. 71:22, Ps. 99:9, Ps. 99:3, Ps. 22:3

¹⁸Deut. 32:4, Ps. 19:8, Rom. 3:25-26

¹⁹2 Cor. 11:2, Ex. 20:5, Ex. 34:14, Isa. 48:11, Deut. 4:24, Deut. 5:9

²⁰Isa. 46:9-10, Ps. 139:15-16, Jer. 1:12, Ps. 127:1, Dan.2:20-21, Rom. 8:28

²¹1 Cor.14:33

²²Deut. 9:7-8, Deut. 29:23, Rom. 1:18, 1 Thess. 1:10, 2 Kgs. 22:13

²³2 Cor. 1:3, Ex. 34:6, 1 Pet. 5:10, Rom. 3:23-24

²⁴Jer.32:17, Gen. 18:14, Jer. 32:27, Lk. 1:37, Matt. 19:26, Matt. 3:9

²⁵Ps. 18:30, Matt. 5:48

²⁶1 Tim. 6:15, 1 Tim. 1:11

²⁷Ps. 27:4

²⁸Ps. 24:10, Lk. 2:9, Rev. 21:23

²⁹ Matt. 3:16-17, 2 Cor. 13:14, Isa. 45:21-22, 1 Tim. 2:5, Rom. 3:30, Jn. 14:26, 1 Jn. 2:1, Jn. 16:7, Lk. 4:14, Acts 10:38, 1 Jn. 1:1-4, Matt. 28:19, Jn. 20:30-31, Jas. 2:19

³⁰ Gen. 1:1, 1 Cor. 8:6, Col. 1:16

³¹Rom. 8:20

³² Jn. 1:3, Heb. 1:2

³³Gen. 1:31

³⁴Gen. 1:27

³⁵Rom. 3:23

³⁶Rom. 6:23

³⁷Rom. 5:15

³⁸Eph. 1:7

³⁹see also Rom. 7:19

⁴⁰Isa. 43:7

⁴¹Ex. 32:11-14, 2 Kgs. 8:19

⁴²Jn. 17:4,5, Eph. 1:11-12

⁴³Jn. 14:15

⁴⁴Jn. 15:8

⁴⁵Gal. 5:16

⁴⁶Rom. 1:19-23

⁴⁷Lk. 13:3

⁴⁸Rom. 8:30, 2 Cor. 5:17, 1 Jn. 3:14, Eph. 1:13-14, Rom. 6:4, Gal. 2:20, Eph. 4:24, Ez. 36:26-27, 1 Pet. 1:5, Lk. 22:31-32, 1 Pet. 5:10, Jn. 6:37-39, Jn. 10:27-30, 1 Cor. 1:8-9, Phil. 1:6, 1 Thess. 5:23-25, 2 Tim. 1:12, 1 Jn. 2:19, Matt. 7:22

⁴⁹Acts17:31

⁵⁰Matt. 25:41

⁵¹Acts 17:11

⁵²2 Tim. 2:15

Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road?

Why?
Why did the chicken cross the road? To get the other side, right? (Okay, you can stop laughing now.) Why did God  part the red sea? So the Israelites could get to the other side, right? Wrong. Why did God part the red sea? To trap Pharaoh's Army...maybe? Not quite.

The Passage Begun
Let's take a look at the passage. Exodus 13:17 says, "When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, 'lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.' Hence God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Red Sea; and the sons of Israel went up in martial array from the land of Egypt."

No Accident
One of the things that we learn from this passage is that God intentionally lead the Israelites "around by way of the wilderness to the Red Sea". It was no accident that they came to the Red Sea; God led them there to fulfill His purposes. 

Ready For Battle
I also found it interesting that, "the sons of Israel went up in martial array from the land of Egypt." They were ready to fight, and there would indeed be a fight. The battle would not be fought by them, however. Once again Pharaoh changed his mind and decided that he was not going to let the Israelites get away that easily. Pharaoh and all his army went with him in pursuit of the Israelites, but God had a plan.

The Passage Continued
Exodus 14:10-18 says,"When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, 

"'Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.'  And Moses said to the people, 'Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.  The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.'
"The Lord said to Moses, 'Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.' "

"I will get glory"
Within chapter 13 and 14, God mentions getting glory three times. In Exodus 13:4 He says, "I will get glory over Pharaoh."Again in 14:17 God says, "I will get glory over Pharaoh." Yet again He says in 14:18, "When I have gotten glory over Pharaoh." The recurring theme in this passage is God's glory. Yes, this is the main reason God parted the sea. He was going to deliver the Israelites, and He was going to triumph over the Egyptians. More than that though, He was going to get glory, and the Egyptians would, "Know that [He] [was] the LORD," This is why God parted the red sea.

God the Deliverer, God the Destroyer
Before I draw this to a close, I have two more point to make. First, God was not only glorified in delivering His people but also in destroying those who were not His. His love and mercy were shown by providing a divine way of escape for the Israelites, and His power and righteous judgement was shown in destroying the Egyptians.
Secondly, In the same way that God was glorified by delivering some and destroying some, He will one day receive glory in condemning some to Hell and saving those who repent and trust Christ. This is  a difficult thing to understand. Isaiah 55:9 says,"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Sometimes we cannot understand God's ways, but who are we to question Him?

"You will say to me then, 'Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?' On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, 'Why did you make me like this,' will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, "Romans 9:19-23

It is true that God's glory is His main objective in all His actions, and His glory should also be our main objective in all our actions. Whose glory are you seeking?

No Peace Now, No Peace Later

We have been in a very trying season of life lately. God has been teaching me a lot though. One of the things that He has been showing me is that peace that is dependant upon circumstances is no peace at all. If I cannot be at peace right now in this difficult season, I will not be at peace when it passes.

 I am reminded of what Jesus said to His disciples when they were in a storm, and they were afraid their boat would sink. He said, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" (Mark 4:40). After reading this passage, I realized that my lack of faith is the reason for my lack of peace. If I were trusting that God knows exactly what He is doing and that He knows exactly what I need, I would not be without peace. True peace comes from faith, faith in the Faithful God. We can have faith in His promise that He will never leave us or forsake us, and we can have peace when our circumstances change because our God does not.

The Little Girl At The Laundromat

She held out her sticky popsicle to me and offered me a lick. The little girl looked about seven years old. "Oh, thank you. I'm okay." I said with a smile. "What's your name?" I asked. The little girl looked at me with her dark eyes and said "Bree"."What a pretty name; my name is Dallas. Is that a good popsicle?" Bree nodded shyly. My older sister and I sat waiting for our clothes to finish drying at the laundromat, and Bree, who was waiting with her mother, had wandered over to us.

My sister and I continued to talk to her. We played a game of tic-tack-toe and drew together on some paper my sister had with her. As we drew, I asked Bree, "Do you know who Jesus is?" She looked up and thought for a moment before replying in her little voice "Um... yeah, He's up there." She pointed upwards.  I asked her if she knew who Adam and Eve were, but she did not. I told her the story and explained that they disobeyed God and had to be separated from Him. I also explained that we too have disobeyed God, and we would have to die and be separated from Him too. I asked her if she knew what Jesus did for her so that she would not have to die and be separated from God. She did not, so I told her that Jesus is God's Son and God sent Him to earth to save us. He never sinned and He died on the cross to pay the price for our sins. I told her that if she asked God to forgive her and trusted in Him, that He would forgive her and give eternal life.

We had to dry our clothes at the laundromat because my little sister's asthma got worse when we dried them at home. I had brought a book to read while I waited, but God had something else planned. I did not know I would have an opportunity to share the gospel. Sometimes our opportunities to share the gospel come to us in unexpected places, and sometimes all we have to do is ask a few questions and show kindness to others. It could be a sticky little girl with a popsicle or an old lady sitting on the bench at Walmart. It could be somebody who you do not know, or it might be somebody in your own home. It is important to, "always [be] ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;" 1Peter 3:15. The truth is, we have many opportunities to share the gospel; sometimes we just do not make good use of them. Who knows, you might have an opportunity today. Ask God to help you make the most of every opportunity He gives you, and be sensitive to the spirit.

What Do You Want To Be Known For?

There are many things that I want people to think of me, but I asked myself the other day,"What do I most want to be known for? Is it my talents, my beauty, or my intellect?" As I pondered this, another question came to mind,"What should I be known for?" Then God brought a verse to mind, "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."John 13:35

Of all the things that I want to be known for, the greatest thing I want to be known for is God's love in me. First Corinthians 13:1-3 says, "If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing." If I have all talent, beauty, and intellect but do not have love, I am nothing. If we are in Christ we should be known for love, for "God is Love"1 John 4:8. I want to be more loving.

What are you known For? What do you want to be known for? How can you become what you want to be?

Escaping

Just Relax
It's been a long day, and you are ready to just relax and turn your brain off. You grab your novel and find a comfortable position. As soon as you open the book, you are in another world. You no longer have to worry about anything that is going on around you, because you imagine you are a part of the world in the book. You can be anyone you want in this book. Life seems so much more exciting in the book that even when you are not reading it, your mind is there.

You find yourself feeling depressed or down, and you know you can always find something to do online. You surf around on Face Book, Pintrest, Utube, and check your emails. Somehow it seems to numb your mind, and the empty time you had is filled or rather passed.

You are board and you find a movie to watch. You can feel all the emotions of the character you like best. Somehow, you find yourself wishing that it were real. The next time you are board you just relive the movie in your imagination.

You are lying in bed drifting off to sleep and you imagine up your own utopia. All the things you wish could happen to you can be real in your mind.

It's that hobby of yours that you can turn to when you need something to occupy your mind. You can ignore all of the other issues in your life when you are shooting those baskets, playing that instrument,  painting that picture, finding the right shoes, or hooking that fish. You can just let your mind be numb.

Mental Escapism
All of your troubles, stresses, and worries can be forgotten and ignored when your mind escapes. We all have ways of doing it, whether I listed yours or not. This is a temptation for all of us, but our troubles will not dissolve if we try to escape them. Many of us do not realize that we have addictions that we use to help us cope. Perhaps we are not even escaping from something but to something. We may just be escaping from our boredom to a more thrilling, interesting, and exciting world. The fact is when we are discontent with the situation God has placed us in, the temptation is to create our own world in our minds. There is nothing wrong with reading, having a hobby, or watching a movie. There is a problem with using these things to escape reality though.

• Not God Glorifying One of the problems with escaping is that there are no other realities. No matter how much we fantasize and fancy we can only be in this world were God has placed us. If we are mentally in a world that does not exist or that we do not exist in, we cannot be glorifying the God who created us to live in this world in the place that we are in. 
• Shows Distrust in God Acts 17:26 says,"and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation," God knows all things. He knows exactly the right geographical location for us, exactly the right year for our birth, and exactly the right circumstances for us to be in. When we try to escape from the place that God has put us mentally, we are showing our distrust in God's ability to work out the details of our lives.
• Not Kingdom Building We are also not able to further God's kingdom when we escape from reality. We are supposed to be seeking first God's kingdom and His righteousness, not the most exciting or pleasurable life. Sometimes building God's kingdom means loving that little baby who cannot thank you, doing the dishes again with a cheerful heart. Sometimes it means getting out of your comfort zone and sharing the gospel. Anything done to build God's kingdom though, cannot be done in a fantasy world or in our imagination.
• Practicing Discontentment Another problem with escaping from reality is that we are not practicing contentment. Paul said in Philippians 4," I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." I have often had to repent of a discontented spirit and and pray for God to help me to learn to be content. When I notice that my mind is escaping, this is one of the major indications that I need to repent of discontentment.
• Not A Good Use of Time No matter how heroic, productive, talented, or virtuous we are in our imaginations, all of our accomplishments from our fantasies do not carry over into reality. In the same way that winning money in the game of Monopoly will not profit you the next time you make a purchase. It is simply not profitable to escape from reality. We are only given a short amount of time on this earth and we must use is well. Ephesians 5:15-17  says, "Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." This is not an option but a command.

Running From Problems, Tasks, and Responsibilities
Often we are like Jonah who tried to escape from the task God had given him, and Elijah who tried to run from his troubles. However, God has intentionally placed each of us exactly were we are for a reason. 

Embracing Your Circumstances

Esther was a Jew who was chosen to be the Kings wife without her consent. While she was queen, a decree went out to kill all the Jews; however, it was against the law for the queen to go to the king unless she was summoned. Mordecai was Esther's uncle and he worked for the king. Upon receiving this news he sent word to His niece. Esther 4:13-17 "Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, 'Do not imagine that you in the king’s palace can escape any more than all the Jews.  For if you remain silent at this time, relief anddeliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?'Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai,  ^'Go, assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa, and fast for me; do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maidens also will fast in the same way. And thus I will go in to the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish.'  So Mordecai went away and did just as Esther had commanded him."

Such a Time as This

Perhaps you find yourself in a difficult situation that you'd just like to escape, but perhaps God has put you in it for such a time as this? No doubt, God had a reason for Esther becoming queen, and he has a reason for everything He does in your life too. If you find yourself having a hard time embracing the circumstances you are in, ask God to help you to see why He has put you there. God may have something to teach you, something he wants you to do, or a character he wants to refine in you. When you embrace the life that God has given you and the plans He has for you, you will find that life is not a thing to escape from but to live for the glory of God. 

Where does your mind tend to escape to? How do you think we can cultivate contentment in out lives?

Is there something you are try to escape from? How do you think God would have you deal with that situation? How can you build God's kingdom right were you are? Do you trust that God knows what He is doing with your life? How well are you using your time? Do you think that escaping your problems is a good way to handle them? May we live life to the fullest for the glory of God!