It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to heaven, we were all going the other way. (A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.)
Charles Dickens’ opening words to his classic novel perfectly describes the alternatives we Americans and other Western nations are going through right now.
So, which is it? Are we believers living in the best of times or the worst of times? And why?
Swimming Upstream appears at this blog site on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It’s a little of this and a little of that, all written to encourage and exhort believers in their Christian journeys.
Larry Who 
President Obama has declared that America is no longer a Christian nation. Countless magazines and commentators have agreed with him by calling our present time period a “Post-Christian Era.”
So, does this mean that we believers are living in the worst of times?
Depends on your perspective. It’s extremely difficult to find the right path in our culture today. Deceit is everywhere, and calling ourselves “Christian” doesn’t mean we’ve escaped deception. In this sense we are living in the worst of times.
And yet… the Spirit is moving in ways history has never before seen. For people who open their eyes to see, it can be the best of times.
Anna,
I live in a state with 11.5% unemployment, in a county with 14% unemployment, in a city where home prices have dropped over 60% and our state is going bankrupt. Retirement funds are in the toilet. Then, add in this: politicians in California and in Washington, D.C., have forgotten what team they are on. Yipes!
But I look at the mess and actually believe we live in the best times ever. Why? Because materialism and government are not working anymore. This means the gospel will appeal to a large, ever-growing percentage of Americans. All will eventually know there is no hope in our economy or our governments.
We believers have the only message which is actually “good news” in bad times.
So, I could care less what the media says or what governments think, this is our hour when Jesus will be high and lifted up. All we have to do is run the race which is set before us; victory is assured.
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I love this time.
It especially hits the Christians because they have for too long deluded themselves that their good and successful life is as a result of their faith.
However in reality, like the rest of society, it is their own self effort that has got them any prosperity. Now in these adverse times Saint and sinner are all in the same boat, short of money and totally at the end of their own strength. Does that “faith” thing really work when it is being tested?
We might now get a body of Christ that is honestly seeking God for his Kingdom rather than mere comfort.
Until we learn how to hear God in the good season, we will never know how to hear him in the bad season. For this reason the saints are running around like headless chickens. Many Christians and non-Christians alike are sadly just waiting in hope for Obama to save them.
I suspect these times will cause a little sorting out in the kingdom.
I can say all this with some sadness, but much laughter in my soul and my spirit. By all reckoning, I am on the verge of bankruptcy. This is nothing to do with the current economic climate though, just events my wife and I are enduring made, worse by the climate.
However for us, the last three years have been the most wonderful and exhilarating years of learning and fellowship with the Lord of our whole lives. Painful though it is, we would not have missed the journey for anything.
Journeying with the Lord, whatever the season is always the best of times