God Has the Whole World in His Hands!

Like many others, you may be experiencing a flood of emotions over current events: fear, anger, confusion, worry, regret, hopelessness, concern, doubt . . . . I’ve heard many ask, “What is the Lord doing?” They were so sure God had a different plan than what we’re watching play out today.

I don’t know the answer to that question, but as I pray and ponder about it myself, the Lord reminded me that America is not the only country God cares about. Even though the world sees America as a leader, we can’t become prideful and think we’re the favored nation to God. We’re not more important than any other people group. Any other country.

That reminder was an ‘aha’ moment for me. It’s not just about us!

I often hear endtimes predictions because of what’s happening in America . . . and maybe that’s true . . . but persecuted Christians in Communist countries, or those living under totalitarian regimes, have probably been praying for the rapture for years, decades, centuries.

In our church bulletin on Sunday, there was an insert from “The Church Around the World.” Here were some of the article headlines: “Christian Girls Abducted in Egypt,” “China Bans 1500-Member House Church,” “Hundreds of Ethiopian Christians Killed,” “Evangelist Murdered in Southeast Turkey.”

God cares about everyone and every injustice worldwide, not only in America.

We’re a free Democracy with the Constitution and a Bill of Rights and many want to live here, but that doesn’t mean God won’t allow us to experience hardships and challenges to our freedom just like in other countries.

I saw someone naively write on Facebook that Communism would never come to America, as if we were insulated from evil. But sadly we’re seeing that America is just as vulnerable to corruption, censorship, and control as any other country.

While it’s shocking and alarming, this pervasive reality should humble us, but not hinder us from how we live our lives everyday: completely trusting God not government.

The New Testament Church is Our Model

Read what Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples who God commissioned to start the early church, reminds Christians who are experiencing challenging times:

¹² Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. ¹³ Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.

¹⁴ If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. ¹⁵ If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. ¹⁶ But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name! ¹⁷ For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? ¹⁸ And also, “If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?”^[c]

¹⁹ So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you. 1 Peter 4:12-19 NLT

I love these thoughts from Chris Tiegreen, which interestingly he wrote in his 2019 Salt and Light Devotional for January 15. Words that seem like they could have been written for 2021.
“The New Testament Church was quite familiar with laws, politics, and culture that went against their practice and beliefs. They understood adversity and prayed boldly through trials, and persevered through persecution. They willingly suffered abuses and ignored insults without complaining about being pushed to the margins and misrepresented by society. They did not fight against the grain of the culture; instead they became shining lights within it. That’s the sort of New Testament spirit we should aim to have.”

I think many of us, myself included, have been wasting our time and energy focusing on the worries of the world that we cannot control. As Tiegreen added, “spiritual power is never dependent on political conditions or social trends.”

In other words, the power of Christ that lives within you and me as Christians comes from God! The government can never take our faith away from us. No one can remove the Holy Spirit from our heart. No law can be passed, or illness/virus overtake us, that inhibits Christ living within us and shining through us.

We would not have the church today if the early church let adverse, even immoral and politically corrupt, conditions hinder them from spreading the Gospel. The church thrived under adversity. Why? Because God’s people were a light in the darkness, just like we should be right now! People are desperate for calm amongst the chaos. They’re seeking a peace that can only come from knowing the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.

I’ve noticed a blog I wrote on February 3, 2020 is trending on my website and it’s even more relevant today than when I wrote it: 4 Ways to Let Your Light Shine Into the World’s Darkness. I hope you’ll take a moment to read it, share it, and implement it.

God Has A Plan for the World

Understandably, we look at how events will affect us personally, a natural reaction. While God cares about each of us individually, He is also looking at the entire universe. When I was a child that was always such a hard concept for me to comprehend. How could He care about my life amongst the trillions of people in the world, and yet, we know He does because He is our omnipotent Abba, Father, God.

Consider these words from Jeremiah 17:5-8 (NLT)
This is what the Lord says:
Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the Lord. ⁶ They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land. ⁷ “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. ⁸ They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.”

Nothing can stop those who put their trust in the Lord from producing and sharing the fruit of the Gospel. The Holy Spirit is pouring down afresh upon God’s people. Hold fast to God’s Word and remember that . . .

“An adverse culture is not a cause for lament. It is not a personal attack. It’s an opportunity to demonstrate the nature of God.”—Chris Tiegreen