-Pigeons-

One of my goals in life is to learn something new everyday. Last week I was sitting outside of the shop at work eating my lunch when I noticed about five pigeons pecking around on the ground in front of me. I looked in my lunch box to see if Elizabeth had packed anything that I could give them: my sandwich, no; my potato chips, no; my Little Debbie cake, no; ahh, here we go, my carrots and celery sticks! I threw the whole bag of veggies on the ground, and they looked as interested in them as I was. Then I noticed something peculiar: the pigeons were pecking on the cement. One of my co-workers (an old man named Willie), came up to me and asked, “Do you know what they are doing?” “Obviously not eating that celery,” I said jokingly. Willy said, “No, they’re eating pebbles.”

I couldn’t believe it… a bird eating rocks. There were fifteen perfectly good pieces of celery and carrot on the ground, and these birds are eating rocks!? I was expecting his next remark to be the rest of the joke, but he had a serious look on his face when I glanced at him. Here is what happens. Pigeons are scavengers. They fly around and look for things to eat. Down the road from the golf course, there is a train station that moves cattle and crops through the state. The pigeons will fly around the train cars picking up grains, corn kernels, and anything else that meets their fancy. However, pigeons cannot digest the corn kernels (much the same way humans cannot). So what the pigeons do is swallow small pebbles that will go into their stomach and help digest the corn kernels. The small pebbles will rub against the whole kernels breaking them apart and making it easier to digest them. It is then that the pigeon can get the nutrients and substance that the corn has to offer. Interesting, huh?

It’s kind of like a worldview. Every person has one. A worldview is how you interpret different moral and ethical issues around you. It is like a “grid” through which you pass different ideas to ultimately determine what your opinion about a certain topic is going to be. It is important for us to have a Christian worldview. Here is how it works. Everyday we are confronted with news about abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, war, the killing of soldiers, etc. We “consume” these ideas when we watch television, hear the opinions of our friends, see groups demonstrating, and observe how different political parties stand on important issues.

Here is the important part: In order to have a Christian worldview, the grid that we use to make our ethical decisions has to be the Bible. Like the pebbles, the word of God will help us break down the issues that we encounter everyday. It will shed light on what is right, what is wrong, and what would be the best decision for us as imitators of Christ to make. So remember that with your daily decisions, be a student of the Word and let the Scriptures be your guide. Everyone has an opinion, and it’s time for Christians to start standing up and sharing ours.

-Spending time in the Word-
“What can you say about a society that thinks God is dead and Elvis is alive?” -Irv Kupcinet

1. What is a Christian worldview for abortion? In Scripture the same Greek and Hebrew words refer to fetus, infant, and young child. The Bible states that humans are knit together by God while yet in their mothers’ wombs (Psalm 139:13), and unborn children share in the sinful nature of the human race (Psalm 51:5). In many instances the Bible refers to God’s protection in the development of the unborn child: Job 31:15; Psalm 22:10; Isaiah 44:2, 24; and Jeremiah 1:5.
2. Read 2 Timothy 3:14-17. Paul points out in these verses the many ways that Scripture is useful in our daily lives.

-Hiding the Word in your heart-

Memorize these verses as you continue to study the Word of God daily.

1. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” -Ephesians 2:10
2. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” -2 Corinthians 12:9

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