The Main Factors Shaping My Worldview

My worldview has been shaped and informed by American Individualism, the digital age and the Word of God. For the first 18 years of my life, American Individualism shaped my worldview. The Digital Age began to influence my worldview at age 13. These two things have most shaped my worldview. However, twenty months ago after my high school graduation, I became a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. I believe that the Holy Scriptures are the inspired, inerrant, authoritative Word of God, which means I allow the Bible to be the primary source that shapes my worldview. I would say then, that my worldview is one that has been infected my American Individualism and the Digital Age, with the Bible being the means to which my worldview is being adjusted. Therefore my worldview is a biblical worldview.

Before I can further explain my worldview, I must define two terms – biblical and worldview. First, let me explain what I mean when I say biblical. The rest of this paragraph is confusing for a reader. I can help you with this. I would not talk about New Testament vs. Old Testament or commandments. I would talk about what it means to allow all of the Scriptures shape and inform your worldview. You can tell if something is biblical if it is a command written in Scriptures. When I say that a particular command is a biblical one, I am saying that it applies to my life because I am a New Testament Christian. And when trying to understand if something is biblical you need to ask questions of the Bible and not taking it out of context. The Bible is set up into two main parts, the Old Testament, and the New Testament. The Old Testament and the New Testament are different.

And this is where we need to understand the context of what we are reading. In the Old Testament Moses went up on a mountain and God gave him the Mosaic Law (the ten commandments) which were given only to the people of Israel, for there time in history. And when Jesus came and established the new covenant, the Mosaic Law was not needed anymore. As New Testament believers we don't have a duty to obey the Mosaic Law unless it is restated in the New Testament. And indeed, there are passages from the Old Testament that are in the new, and we need to submit to those commands and lives our lives according to those. Second, let me define what I mean when I use the term worldview. 'I say that a man must be certain of his morality for the simple reason that he has to suffer for it'. A worldview is a framework from which we view reality and make since of life and the world. It is also a combination of all you believe to be true, and what you believe becomes the driving force behind every emotion, every decision, and every action you make. Your worldview affects every part of your life from the person you vote for president, to the clothes you wear, to the way you spend your money.

In the very heart of the western civilization, we see a common trend of individualism and the love for-self. Individualism has affected every part our lives. America has put a great deal on what makes you happy and what is comfortable for yourself. Also known as the 'American Dream'. The American Dream is rooted in self-centeredness and individual goals. It is the belief everyone's life belongs to themselves and they have the right to live it as they see fit. Therefore because I live in America my heart is constantly wanting to be self-centered. For most of my 20 years of life, I have had this worldview, seeking happiness and prosperity. Even as a Christian it’s hard to fight back the worldview that still lingers sometimes, because it has been instilled in you when you were young. As long as I can remember thinking about I have been exposed to technology and other digital things. We as American strived to make things fast, easy and more effective. We are also trying to find ways to do those things, and technology has helped that out in so many ways. It used to take days or weeks to send messages to people across the state or across the country to communicate.

Now we can send messages instantly through text messages or emails. It’s crazy to see how far technology has changed in the last century. Also, with all the good things that digital age brings there are also cons also. People are constantly on their technology and it hinders us in numerous ways. People use their phones as a security blanket and they don't leave their houses without their phone and become so dependent on it (including me). It affects our physical health, but I'm not worried about that as much as our mental health. It affects our communication skills to other people and makes it hard for people to communicate in ways we did before the digital age. People would rather sit around a table and not talk to each other because everyone would rather be on their phones reading twitter or Facebook. Cell phones have made us anti-social people as it is evident in my life as it can be hard for me to strike a conversation with someone else because I would rather be on my phone scrolling through some kind of social media. Also because of cell phones, it has caused am a big issue with my spelling and grammar. We like to abbreviate everything in text and use lingo that is not appropriate for an important paper. And because we are always on our phones it is not helping us practice the proper skills need to succeed in the real world.

We live in a fallen world where sin is everywhere, and brokenness is everywhere. You don't need to be a Christian to see that the world is broken and evil. Nothing is perfect in this world and nothing will last. And because of this Christian need to see the world different as a non-Christian. The main objective that a Christian should have to love and serve God. But for a non-Christian, the main objective in life may be happiness or self-love. For a Christian this life is not our own, we are just passing thru awaiting our eternal home in heaven with God. And maybe a non-Christian think that is there home and they want the nicest home, the newest car, the latest technology. None of those are necessarily 'evil' it's just the way your heart is. Is your heart out of love for God, or is your heart out of self-love, for self?