Hi! I'm Dave! or "Welcome to a Dave's Eye View"

Hi! I'm Dave! This is the beginning of my blog. I am writing a blog in hopes that my thoughts on life will help others in their life journey. I also help to use it to get to know people and for people to get to know me. I often have thoughts running through my head that I want to share and I think that this blog will be a good avenue for that.

I enjoy many great blessings in my life. One of those is having the role of being Associate Pastor of Student Ministries at Fairhaven Church in Centerville (Suburb of Dayton), Ohio. This role allows me to work with Middle School students, High School students, and College age people. I look forward to getting to know people better in days ahead.

A bird's-eye view is a view of an object from above, as though the observer were a bird, often used in the making of blueprints, floor plans and maps. (source= wikipedia) You might have guessed that I am not a bird, as birds can not type. As I previously stated, my name is Dave, and I have a different view on life than many people. If you have seen me then you know that I am vertically challenged. Although I see things at a lower level than some, that is not why. If you have heard me talk about myself and my history you might know that my vision is twice as bad as what is needed to be considered legally blind (yes, I do still drive-I have contacts and glasses that are sufficient). I am not talking about a visual view as much as a world view.

I see the world differently for a couple of reasons. First of all, I think differently than many people. It is a little difficult to explain, but I act and mentally process things differently than other people.

Secondly, I have a Biblical world view. Everyone looks at the world through some type of mental lens. George Barna in his research puts it like this (for the purposes of his research): "A biblical worldview is defined as believing that absolute moral truths exist; that such truth is defined by the Bible; and firm belief in six specific religious views. Those views were that Jesus Christ lived a sinless life; God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe and He stills rules it today; salvation is a gift from God and cannot be earned; Satan is real; a Christian has a responsibility to share their faith in Christ with other people; and the Bible is accurate in all of its teachings." Having this view affects not only the way that I think, but the way that I act, and how I treat other people. The more that I embrace this view, the more I can become like Christ Jesus. I often pray for God to help me to see things like He does, thinking like He does, seeing others like He does, and acting more like Him.

My question at this time to encourage and challenge you and I is to ask, “Through what lens are we viewing the world?” I welcome your comments.