“For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart,” 1 Samuel 16:7.
These flowers are considered by some to be wild and by others to be weeds. Perhaps they interfere with the growth of our own plants. They may intrude on our carefully landscaped flower beds or gardens. They may sprout up into and between the blades of grass of our beautifully sodded yard. Our clean lines between grass and shrubs or flower beds may look ragged when these wild growing plants find their way into our yard.
To change our human perspective of these common plants, we should take a look with a different lens. These were created by God for a purpose. These plants provide nourishment for other creatures. They weave the ecosystem together in different climates. They are, in many cases, stronger against the harshest of weather than our carefully planted seeds and bulbs. These are to be appreciated as His creations.
This year, my parents’ yard surprisingly had a large row of bluebonnets show up for the first time. These wildflowers perfectly lined their circular driveway. My dad’s interpretation of this event was, “These had to be planted by God.” He was right.
Humans are the same way. We are created for a purpose. We must survive on our planet and live our lives as God desires. This means all humans, even those we don’t understand or those we feel don’t belong in certain situations, should be shown kindness. The verse above from 1 Samuel is one in which we find Samuel looking for the new king. Samuel looked at each of Jesse’s older sons, thinking surely it would be this one. To Samuel’s surprise, God selected the youngest son, David, not yet a man. God told Samuel that He saw David differently than Samuel did. God’s view was through His lens that looked inside the heart of David and knew his potential. We too must look at each other with a different lens.
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“For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with the inscription ‘To an unknown God.’ So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship-and this is what I am going to proclaim to you now,” Acts 17:23.
This verse is another wonderful example of using a different lens. This comes from the story of Paul when he was in Athens. The people of Athens believed in false gods and had statues of false gods which they worshiped. Knowing the beliefs of the Athenians were extremely different than Paul’s belief in God, Paul did not begin talking with the Athenians by accusing them of being bad people because they did not understand God. He did not lecture or try to force his words upon them. Rather, Paul found a common ground and began to ask questions about their depiction of an unknown god. He used this as a starting point. Because he carefully began the conversation they were receptive to learn more about God.
When we are with others with whom we disagree, perhaps we are tempted to force our own beliefs upon them. People should believe the way we believe. If not, and we don’t find a common ground, we give up, shrug our shoulders, and maybe even walk away.
How can we find common ground with people who believe things we don’t? How do we look at others through a different lens? How can we appreciate all people, believers and nonbelievers, and have meaningful discussions to promote a better understanding of our world? How can we be examples of God’s love? The media is jammed packed with people who disagree, yell, and even commit violent acts toward those who are on the other side of a viewpoint, political belief, or faith. As people who believe the command given to us by Jesus to love others, don’t we need to follow Paul’s example and start a conversation?
Please click on the video below and take a look at the trailer for my new release. After viewing, please share the video with others. Let’s start a different conversation.