Jewelry and Worldviews

How did a simple necklace provoke me to start considering worldviews yesterday? Well, let me explain. Yesterday morning I was getting ready and searched my jewelry collection for a necklace to wear. Hanging to the right was a necklace I have been wearing a lot recently. My husband purchased it from an adorable store in downtown Franklin along with a sweet, handwritten card for a Christmas gift. The necklace has a silver coin and inscribed on it is the word “worthy”. He also gave me a silver ring with the simple inscription, “enough”. My husband is very thoughtful and gives great gifts and this jewelry set affirmed how he felt about me. He knows that those are the words I often need to hear. Because the truth is, I often feel inadequate. These are the lies the enemy whispers in my ear and if I am not careful to combat his attacks with truth, I can begin to believe him. He often says things like, “you’re not pretty enough”, “you’re not smart enough”, “you’re not well spoken enough”, “you just don’t have what it takes.” When I confided in Gabe the way that I was feeling and how I was struggling with these thoughts, he looked at me so sincerely and reminded me of the truth that I needed to hear. That while he believes I am enough, a wonderful wife, mother, etc., ultimately the Lord is the one who strengthens and sustains me. He alone is worthy and enough and I needed to rely on him instead of myself. These are the sweet reminders he wrote in the card and they brought me much joy as I unwrapped them Christmas morning.

            However, when I went to put on these visible affirmations, I paused. For some reason, wearing a necklace that said “worthy” felt a little strange. And the ring that said “enough”, what exactly was this portraying to others? Because I know that Gabe and I share the same worldview but to someone else who doesn’t this message could look very much like the messages that flood all of our social media accounts on a daily basis. We are told constantly to be #bossbabes (I am sure there is a counter message for you guys). That we can do anything we set our minds to and the only thing that is stopping you from fulfilling your dream is you. It is hard to not get swept up in this. It is a feel good, inspiring message that may cause you to jump out of bed, put on your jogging shoes and do that work out you’ve been putting off or put your name in for that promotion. I don’t mean to flat out condemn these messages, sometimes we all need an inspiring word to do the next right thing, but here is where the message falls flat. Often times these messages are all about living your best life now. That you only get one life and you need to live it to the fullest. Accomplish all of your hopes and dreams. You are enough and you have enough to do anything you set your mind to. These messages are positive and effective. Many of the people who are spewing it have millions of followers. But here is the one thing they are missing. This life isn’t your one life. Jesus tells us in John 5:24, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”

            When we spend our time focusing on accomplishing all of our hopes and dreams in this one life, constantly striving and straining to get ahead, we miss the eternal perspective. Again, Jesus in Matthew 6:19 states to not store up for ourselves treasures on earth which will not last. But to instead store up treasures in heaven that will be everlasting. We are not to live with the orphan perspective that this is our one shot here on earth. Hear me, I am not saying that you shouldn’t work hard, we want to honor God by doing a great job in the workplace. But instead of working tirelessly on earth to achieve all of your dreams, perhaps we need to shift perspective and seek what the Lord is calling us to do in this life that will trickle into the next kingdom. 

            I think one of the ways we can let this seep into our thoughts is to become more aware of the messages that we are taking in. If most of the people you are following are telling you live your best life now, start to recognize that. One of the most helpful strategies in discernment that I have learned and hope to pass along to my children is to recognize someone’s worldview. What do I mean by that? Each of us has a way in which we interpret the world. We have an idea on how creation was formed, what happened to account for all of the evil in the world, and how we believe it should be fixed. A historical Christian worldview would say that God created the world and everything in it. Sin is the root cause of all evil in the world and Jesus Christ’s sinless life, death, and resurrection is the only solution to the problem of evil. We believe that in the end, God will have final judgement on the world and believers will experience eternal life in his presence. 

            One of the best ways to begin discerning the content you are taking in is to ask the question, “what is this person, movie, tv show etc’s worldview.” In much of the self-help genre that is so popular in our day and age, the problem is actually you and you need to do the work, dust off your bootstraps and fulfill all of your dreams. You are the only one standing in your way. I would encourage you to start thinking deeper about these messages. Start trying to pick out what the underlying message the person or movie is trying to get across. This is easy to do in Disney movies as well. Take for instance the movie Moana. The main problem in that movie is that Maui, a demi-god, stole the heart of Te Fiti and that is why her island is experiencing rotten coconuts and no fish. She sets out on an adventure to return the heart to restore creation. This is starkly different than the Christian worldview and is easy to recognize. 

            So, am I telling you to never watch, listen to, or “follow” anyone who doesn’t have a Christian worldview? No. I am telling you to begin to look for it. The more you practice it, the easier it will be to spot. Talk about it with your kids so that they too know what to look for when they are watching tv. We can’t live in a bubble, but as my dear friend Kat’s pastor says, “if you don’t know what you’re listening for, you won’t know what you’re listening to.” As you begin to identify their view, you can more easily call out the lie and correct it with truth. The sweet jewelry that I have that says “enough” and “worthy” do not show the whole truth. I alone am not worthy or enough and what a relief that is! Trying to be enough is too much pressure for any of us to bear. While I constantly fall short, I know that I have a Savior who is absolutely worthy and enough and through him I am made whole and complete. That is the only worldview that will bring you true hope and joy.