I recently watched a documentary on the tragedy of the mid-west “Dust Bowl.” A man who lived in the area his entire life scooped up a handful of dirt and exclaimed to the reporter, “Look, it’s upside down!” We stripped the tall, native grasses from the land, exposing the dense top layer of sand.
Underneath, approximately 12 inches down, was dark, rich soil. The farmers, deceived into investing their blood, sweat, and tears, harvested the land by plowing deep into the soil. In effect, they turned it upside down. The results led to the most catastrophic man-made disaster in all of US history. The reason? We stripped the land of its protective God-given covering.
A God-Given Covering
Sadly, to this day, we continue to do the same thing. We have stripped our land of another God-given covering: His blessing and His Presence. We’ve driven Him out of our schools, our courthouses, and our government. Have we forgotten that our government was founded by men guided by God’s principles?
What was once sacred is now reviled. What was once reviled is now celebrated. In effect, we’ve turned our world upside down.
“They exchanged the truth of God for a lie. … Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. … Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:25, 28, 32)
An Upside Down Solution
And so here we are, in a world turned upside down. Yet God, in His mercy, still offers hope! And get this: the solution appears upside down! While every other religion places the demand for restitution on the sinner, only the God of the Bible places the burden of restitution on Himself.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Thank you, Father in Heaven, for your protection and blessings. May we never forget that You alone are our refuge and strength. Though we fail You, Your mercies are new every morning. We praise You and thank You for the gift of Jesus, Who came into a world upside down to show us the way home.
Shadia is a passionate Bible teacher, author and speaker who has a heart for seeing lives transformed by the power of God’s Word. She holds a master’s in biblical and theological studies from Western Seminary and is author of several books and Bible studies, including HAGAR: Rediscovering the God Who Sees Me, TAMAR: Rediscovering the God Who Redeems Me, and LEGION: Rediscovering the God Who Rescues Me.
Beautiful! And after yesterday’s “festivities” it is particularly appropriate. We have forsaken the values that created this great land and have eaten the apple of selfish, senseless sinfulness.
Elsewhere in the book, we are told that we reap what we sow. I shudder to think of the harvest we have planted.
Judith, so true indeed…
I am taking a Human Sexuality class to complete the Humanities requirements for my AA. It’s a Psychology course that teaches factual and scientific information regarding our sexuality.
One of the first things the book covers is the historical background and therefore discusses Christianity. It also informs us about Greek, Roman, Indian, and Chinese cultures and how they have reacted to sexual behavior. Of these cultures, Christianity is pinned – according to the text – as the culture that “allows” sex but only within a marriage and that St. Paul encourages celibacy as the preferred behavior. (And that Jesus is mostly quiet on the topic.) Since when did St. Paul become our Savior!! Haha.
I know that the author is just “sticking to the facts” but she has clearly taken His word out of context in the brief paragraphs that she writes about Christianity and misses so many other messages that its almost misguiding – thank goodness she quickly moves on to other topics. But I am keeping my eye out on any other place that she (or other college textbook authors) sprinkles misinformation about God and what He has intended for us.
Good for you, Erin! 🙂 It’s unfortunate that we will find endless examples of God’s Word being taken out of context. If she had really done her homework on what Paul taught and the culture of Christianity at the time, it would have been obvious to her that Paul (and Jesus) taught on the value and gift of marriage for society and individuals, while choosing to forgo it for himself in order to fully devote his energy to preaching. It’s a choice. Bless you, my friend! 😀
Hi Shadia, good post & I appreciated the comments. Jesus has a much to say about the sin of adultery in The Bible. And He addresses fornication in his interaction with the woman at the well, (“go and sin no more.”). Other sexual sins are covered thoroughly in several books of The Bible. The Bible says every other sin is outside a man’s own body. In another place, (I think Thessalonians), sex outside of marriage is referred to as “defrauding your brother, (or sister).” I am sure you know all of this – but with secular authors – ohhh, they don’t want to acknowledge this as sin. Good post. Thank you.
Brenna
Very true, thank you, Brenna! 🙂
I love this, Shadia! “We stripped our land of its God-given covering: His Presence.”
Thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad the article blessed you, Dawna!
“Look, It’s Upside Down,” is succinct and so impactful. I have been weighed down heavily today by the seeming “success” of evil and trying to remind myself of Scriptures which state: “Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good,” and more… This is a great analogy. I did not know the story behind what occurred in the “dust bowl,” although I certainly knew it happened. Many of the ancestors of Christians in the valley of CA, (Fresno, Bakersfield, Visalia, etc came as a result of the Oklahoma dust bowl. Pastor Herb Henry in Modesto is one of them. Thank you, Shadia.
Blessings, Brenna. I am so glad the article ministered to you. It’s true that we are surrounded by much evil, but we know that the enemy’s days are numbered. Our Lord has already won the victory.