In the Sand or in the Hand

Sometimes I choose to put my head in the sand. Actually, I choose to do that often and about many issues and subjects. Sometimes I do that to survive. I scan my horizon and see so many things I could be concerned about. Other people seem concerned but I choose not to be. Consider global warming. Or the next president of the US. Maybe I even do that over the war in Iraq. There was a time in my life I would be highly opinionated about all three of those subjects. Today, I take a different approach. Why? Because I've learned that my opinions on issues such as those do not change those things one iota. Let's take global warming. I remember well when one wasn't so concerned about the environment. I don't mean that was the correct approach but we didn't get so bent out of shape about our place in preserving God's creation. It was there and I think we had a sense that God would take care of it with us or without us. It is very clear to me that we shouldn't throw things out the car window as we did when I was a child. (I also remember taking the tractor and trailer to the back woods with the trailer piled full of garbage. It was thrown on what we called our dump. You city dwellers don't remember not having a garbage man. We burned what we could and piled the rest in a place unseen. That pile is still on my father's property.) We need to care for our world better than that now that we can. I also believe we shouldn't contaminate the earth or air with toxins. But I have come to believe with all my heart that God has built into our world a restorative power. It is first of all His, He made it and He sustains it, why should I fret and worry? I'll do what I can to be a responsible steward but I'm not getting myself involved in a theory like global warming regardless of what the scientists say. Next subject. Will it be Obama or Hillary or someone else? In the past I've gotten all wrapped up in the hype. I choose not to at this stage of the game. I have an opinion (hoping it is neither) but I'm trusting God will put into office the person of His choosing. I feel I can do much more by praying for His will in the matter than by arguing or fretting or prophecying bad news if one or the other wins. The war in Iraq. First of all let me say that I have more faith in President Bush than most of the people I hear on the news. I believe his confession that he listens to the advice of God. Yes, I think he gets caught up in the power that money can buy but I cannot for the life of me believe that he is an idiot. I choose to believe that he knows a whole bunch more than I do and more than the reporters know. I also believe that as a powerful nation we have been given the responsibilty to expel evil both at home and around the world. Recently we visited the Holocaust Museum in DC. The visit confirmed in my heart that we cannot let violent rulers have their way in this world. So, without a lot of true knowledge about the war, (because I don't think we can believe most of those reporting it) I must trust the people in our government that are responsible for making the decisions. Again, my biggest contribution is my prayers that God will have His way in Iraq as well as in the US and around the world. I believe my prayers (your prayers) release God's power in Iraq. Pray for wisdom for our leaders. So instead of sticking our heads in the sand, perhaps it is a better thought to stick our concerns in the Hand.