No News Is Good News

Blessed is the one

    who does not walk in step with the wicked

or stand in the way that sinners take

    or sit in the company of mockers,

but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,

    and who meditates on his law day and night. Psalm 1:1-2

I was a natural born pessimist and worrier. I believed you should expect the worst so that when it happened you would not be surprised by it. But then I realized I wanted to be a salesman and my old way of thinking would never work for me in that profession.

I began reading positive thinking books, listening to positive preachers on cassette tapes, and watching them on TV. I began to positively charge my mind and it removed my negative thinking.

 

That change in thinking has served me very well over the years. Suffering many horrible illnesses and afflictions I don’t see how I would have survived those challenges and trials with a negative, pessimistic attitude. 

After the 2020 U.S. election I went on a “news fast”. Tired of the endless barrage of negativity I found the old idea that it was important to stay informed was not serving me well. I ended my news fast after a while, but then restarted it, and then ended it again. A few months ago I came to the conclusion that I had completely had enough. I surmised that whether the news was on the right or left (there is no middle ground anymore) the job of journalists today is to keep their watchers, readers, and listeners: Angry, Upset, and Afraid. They generally have nothing good to say. Even when they have an important point to make they have to beat it to death and get endless opinions from people just like them to drive around a circle of cynicism and vitriol. 

I wonder what might happen if people would turn from the unending mocking and cynicism of today’s news and instead turn to the Good News of Jesus Christ for a mind and soul cleansing?

I haven’t returned to watching the news beyond the weather on my local news channel, nor do I miss it. I find that I hear enough news from people around me without ever seeking out any of the “important pressing opinions” of the newsroom talking heads. My mental and emotional health has improved, as has my blood pressure. 

If instead of beginning the day with the news, what effect might it have if you began the day by reading the Bible? Or listening to Christian music? Or simply finding a way to enjoy the beauty of God’s Creation? Sometimes the best news you can hear is no news. But greater than avoiding endless bad news and negative reports, if instead you would focus on the Author of the Good News, Jesus Christ our Savior, you would not just become a more hopeful and positive person but a work of God transformed into a child of the Kingdom of God!

Prayer: Dear Lord, forgive us the time we waste ranting and raging against the things we cannot change. Help us to change the things we can, and help us leave the rest up to you. Not only will we then find serenity, but a peace from You that surpasses all understanding and sets us free to think in a new and better way. Let it be so Lord. Amen.

Reading The Second Book Of God

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1

Did you know there are two books of God? Everyone is familiar with the first book, the Bible, but many people do not realize every time they enjoy the beauty of creation they are reading the second book of God.

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. Genesis 1:31

Every time you hear birds singing, see the majesty of an eagle soaring overhead, admire the myriad of beautiful flowers, and any number of other amazing things our God made, you are reading from that second book.

Those who say they know nothing about God, or that if God were real–why doesn’t He prove it? Those people ignore the mountain of evidence they see each day when they step outside their door.

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. Romans 1:20

It is hard to deny God when you see the silent but glorious stars overhead, the fiery light of our sun or soft glow of our moon. When a colorful cardinal alights just beyond your window, or a robin hops across your front yard, trees overhead move gently in the breeze, and squirrels chatter at you and then quickly scurry away–God is seen by His handiwork.

Don’t overlook the obvious, don’t deny the beauty found in large and small things all around you. Give God praise for His amazing creation, and if you don’t have a personal relationship with the Lord who made it all, call upon Him now. There is no excuse not to.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for every fish, bird, animal, and humans. Thank you for the insects under our feet and the beauty of the sunset in the sky. You made it all, and we give You Praise for it all. Amen.