How did we get here? This is the question that I keep asking myself as I turn on the news each morning. In the United States, it seems we are at an all-time low in our history. We are divided politically as government leaders and citizens. Our political parties see the world with stark difference, with no possibility of dialogue, cooperation or compromise. We are divided racially with each people group rallying to protect "their own". We are divided economically while everyone clambers for seemingly limited resources.
Fear, hostility, and isolation currently mark much of our national attitudes. As a result, we tend to look inward, protect ourselves from forces that are against us, and seek to advance our own needs and agendas without concern for others.
As followers of Jesus, these prevailing attitudes could not be further from the heart of Jesus. God did not call us to be fearful, insulated, myopic followers. In fact, Scripture speaks volumes about why we should care about the rest of the world beyond our immediate family, social circles, and country.
GOD'S CREATION IS BEAUTIFUL
I grew up traveling to national parks across the United States for family vacations. While this wasn't my first choice as a child, I did encounter the breathtaking beauty and diversity of our planet.
In Genesis 1 and 2 we see that God created the entire universe. It says that He saw its vast array and said, "it is good." Astonishingly, Genesis tells us that God gave it as a gift to us to enjoy, fill, and subdue.
The world that God created is so magnificent that it cannot help but to perpetually declare the glory of its Creator. Psalm 65:8 tells us, "The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy." Romans 1:20 similarly tells us that God reveals His invisible qualities to us through Creation.
Not only did God create the heavens and earth in vast array, He created people in the same manner. People are the pinnacle of God's creative work. I have always been in awe of God's imaginativeness in the diversity of our physical appearances, the complexity of cultures, and the intricate beauty that surrounds it all.
The New Testament culminates with a picture of people from every part of the earth together with God. When we learn about other cultures and people groups and embrace people who look and think differently than we do, we are experiencing a little taste of heaven on earth. That's why meeting people who are different from me has always brought me great joy. When I meet God's children, I actually get a glimpse of eternity. When we live in fear and isolation, we miss out on the gifts that are all around us.
WE ARE ALL HUMAN
There's a concept in psychology called "social identity theory," which explains how we categorize people into groups of "us" and "them", and "in-groups" versus "out-groups." Our tendency is to discriminate against people in the out-group in order to subconsciously make ourselves look and feel better. We do this all the time as we interact with people locally and around the world. Our unconscious dialogue often is, "My way, beliefs and actions are correct and superior." While we may not say this out loud, we use this assumption to build barriers between people and ourselves who are different from us.
When we delegate certain people to the out-group, we minimize our similarities and our common humanity. Whether we live in a suburb, rural area, or a city, whether we live in North America, Latin America, or Africa, we all have the same needs and the same dreams for our lives. While we may not feel any connection to a person on the other side of the world, or the other side of our city, our common humanity is found in our Creator. He created us each with His image emblazoned within us. That is the tie that binds us together.
Author Christina Cleveland says that when we look for people who are in our in-group, we tend to rely mostly on our smaller cultural identities and ignore our larger common identity in the body of Christ. There are seven billion people in our world, all on the same journey to find and live the abundant life that Jesus offers.
Our similarities are always greater than our differences. Once we decide to welcome people into our in-group, it's much easier to see our common humanity. Because the image of God is within each person, we can learn something new about God from every person we meet, especially people who are different because they will reflect God to us in a new and unique way.
WE ARE ALL CONNECTED
We are more connected than we have ever been in the history of the world. With changes in travel, communication and the economy, the world truly is at our doorstep. In one week, I can meet a neighbor from Somalia, eat at a Japanese restaurant, text a friend in Kenya, take a business trip to Italy, and talk to a customer service agent in India.
While our world is more connected than ever, many people are reporting record levels of loneliness. When my kids are struggling, or I'm sick, or when my marriage is failing, it feels like I am the only one with the problems. I can feel so alone, and my only concern is to continue surviving.
While each of us is unique, our stories often are not. It's here where we can discover that we're not alone. God placed us in families, communities, and the world for our benefit, because we were made with an innate need to share our lives with others. Bishop Desmond Tutu once said, "My humanity is bound up in yours - we can only be human together." God has put us in this world to share our humanity with each other.
In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul talks about this concept using the metaphor of a body. As the body of Christ, Paul says that we cannot exist without one another. A person in Canada can share the suffering of a woman in Congo. The gifts of the church in Kenya can benefit the church in Australia. The depression of a teen in the suburbs can be healed by a grandmother in the city. We need one another, and we are stronger when we are knit together.
WE HAVE MUCH TO LEARN
One of my greatest faults it to think that I am always right. As Americans, we have particular difficulty broadening our perspectives because we have always seen ourselves as leaders politically and economically, as well as in the world of faith. We typically don't realize that our worldview and faith are limited by our upbringing, culture, and experiences.
In the book, For the Love, the author talks about how our faith cannot make sense only in our cultural context. Genuine faith will resonate not only with us, but also with a struggling mom in Haiti. It is a huge step of humility for those of us who are self-sufficient, independent-minded, and economically advantaged to admit that we need to learn from others across the globe. That means even our faith needs to morph in order for it to make sense in a broader context.
The beauty of this step of humility is that our lives and our faith will always be enriched. As we surrender our control and open ourselves to others, we open ourselves to growth. As we expand our minds and hearts, our lives, families, businesses, and communities will be enriched.
THE HEART OF GOD
Ultimately, we must care about the world because God cares about it. He created this world. He intimately knows and deeply loves each person inhabiting our planet. Each one of these people is our neighbor. He is enacting a plan right now to bring His kingdom to earth, and we are invited to participate. I don't want to miss the heart of God because I was so busy looking at myself.
