Fitting into God's Creation

St. Paul’s life was certainly not free of pain and suffering for the Lord. His optimism in the Lord is an example for us as we live out our lives in faith.  Paul was not always connected to our Lord Jesus.  Many of us have struggled with worldly distractions before turning our lives over to God through Jesus and trusting in Him and His Son.  St. Paul says in Romans 8:26-34: "We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose."

It takes a strong faith to forge ahead for God when we are encountered at every turn by forces that would see us fail. God promises that no matter what or who our foe, the happenings in our lives will be positioned together to work for good. How do we receive ownership in this? We must love God, listen for His call and take action on it no matter what is in our way.

Diogenes Laertius, the ancient Greek philosopher, wrote this dynamic description of  Earth and Man in his “Time is the Image of Eternity”: "Eons before man, the perpetual ebb and flow of the ocean's tides carved an ever-changing face on the spinning globe. From the ocean's depth came man and inhabited the Earth. Like the tides in which he was born he brought changes...As the seas raged against the Earth, ocean and land now fused now torn, so man met conflict. Struggle and peace became the alternating tides of history. We cannot mourn the ebbing tide, as soon the flow will rush to land.

So man has learned, eternal conflict is perpetual growth. Today's struggle is tomorrow's strength. We are part of man's perpetual renewal of strength. This strength is knowledge, accumulated for us in the course of time. So we become in our time an image of eternity mirroring all mankind. But unlike the tides controlled by the stars, we are not bound to fixed limitations. The future, a constant tide, ebbing and flowing, is ours to determine."

While this is a beautiful piece, I always take the liberty to mentally add some things that would have made it complete for me. First of all, what Diogenes is describing here is God's created Earth. The future is ours to determine good in this world.  If we love God and accept His calling according to His purposes, as St. Paul said, we will please Him and good will flow. We will, however, always have difficult challenges. At the end of our very short stay on Earth, we will lose the gift of 'free will' and God will take us to His chest. We should try to seek God every day in anticipation of that day.

It is only through great discipline that we can fend off the evil that engulfs the world and tempts us. The pressures are great for the strongest. In our faltering we give in to the secular culture. We set the bar low. As long as we don't get caught or called into judgment by the secular world, we're safe. We fool ourselves, but not God.

History is full of witnesses to the power of God over darkness, over evil. Many have testified to close encounters with God, which have moved them away from evil and changed their lives. The unbelievers put more stock in the last lottery ticket they bought than in the way of the cross.

God is at work in those who believe in Him; those who accept His grace and pray to Him. When we doubt the power of God it is usually because we cannot believe that He can work miracles through us. Our spiritual self-esteem is bankrupt. We are like the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Lion. We fail to realize that we possess the very qualities that we seek. We fail to understand that the only true and gentle power is the power of God. That power dwells within us. Our challenge is to recognize it and use it.