My view of the world changed when I was in Elementary School.
I thought that I was your average student, but I didn’t realize that I had an imperfection (inherited from my Mom) that would forever change my perception on life.
Most classes back then were divided into the “smart kids” and the “rest of the class.” I was the pillar of the rest of the class. My teachers would always comment that I never seemed to perform up to my potential and I was often agitated at myself for that. I noticed one day in class (as I was asked to read out-loud) that the sentences I was attempting to read appeared blurry on the page. This caused me to read at a snail’s pace and mispronounce many words. My teacher suggested that I get my eyes checked. Sure enough, I needed glasses.
My grades were struggling and I wasn’t performing up to my potential because I couldn’t see clearly! Once my vision improved, so too did my grades and my attitude.
How we “see” the world does affect our behavior. We call this our worldview. A worldview is a way of looking at, and living in, the world based on one’s values and convictions. While it is rare to find people that have all beliefs in common, there are belief systems that tend to fall into groups of similar beliefs. Some of the most common worldviews are:
Biblical Christianity: Here one believes in a supernatural God, who created the world and mankind. There is absolute right and wrong with God’s Word (the Bible) being the source. In addition to man’s body, he/she also possess a spirit and soul, so dealing with such a person involves both physical and spiritual issues. A Biblical worldview believes that man’s “faith alone” in Jesus Christ’s atoning death and resurrection determines where they will spend Eternity.
Secular Humanism: Here most adherents are Agnostic, as God isn’t relevant to their life. Mankind was created from a “big bang” and evolved over time. There is no absolute right and wrong as behavior is relative to the situation. Their motivation is to be a better person through good works and charity. All ideas, feelings, and inspiration come from the physical workings of the brain. Everything in the world can be understood by science and technology. Humanist’s aren’t sure about an afterlife but believe that their good works should be rewarded.
Post Modernism: Here one believes in individualism and pragmatism, not God, as the universe cannot be fully understood. It’s a survival of the fittest attitude in that whatever works, not what’s right, is rule of law as man has the capacity to govern themselves. Let people choose what is right, but dominate them if they are indecisive. This worldview is results oriented and is the most prevalent in the workplace. This life is all there is, so rise as high as you can go.
Cosmic Humanism: As is the case with most Eastern religions, here one believes in Pantheism (many gods) or Panantheism (everything is god). Everything is connected and nothing is disconnected and you have to get in touch with your “inner self” in order to figure out right from wrong. There is no afterlife as everything is reincarnated or turned back to nothing.
It’s interesting to see how one’s worldview affects their political view as well. Most conservatives tend to believe in biblical Christian values, while most Democrats are Secular Humanists. According to the Barna Research Group, only 4% of Americans have a Biblical worldview.
According to Phyllis Schlafly (Harvard Law School), “Secular Humanism has become the established religion in the U.S. public school system.
The devastating results from a secular worldview are witnessed every day in the news headlines by immorality, broken families, wasted lives, and a loss of hope in the future. Non-biblical worldviews bombard us daily from television, radio, film, music, magazines, books, academia, and the Internet. Because we live in a fallen world, these ideas seductively appeal to our flesh and we often end up incorporating them into our daily lives without ever realizing it.
In this day of moral relativism, it’s ever more important to hold onto a Christian worldview which believes that God is in control of ALL situations (good and bad), and that He works all things for good. This doesn’t mean that bad things won’t happen to good people. It does mean that the Christian, who faces life’s storms, will hold on to the Christian worldview and have Jesus as their cornerstone to get them through any occurrence.
The Christian worldview believes that there is a purpose in our existence, and life after death. It believes that eternal salvation cannot be earned through works, but through faith, alone, in Jesus Christ. This is the only worldview that gives us HOPE for Eternity.
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