As humans, we have a tendency to see the glass half empty, the world darker than it is, and the future uncertain. Yesterday we remembered God's mission and His promise to redeem the nations. Today, in Psalm 98, we see that mission in its proper setting. Today we work to shape our worldview, bringing to mind the fact that no matter how messed up the world seems to be, the entire earth and all that is in it still belongs to the Lord.

I love how the opening stanza of the passage is a call to sing, to declare the good and wonderful things the Lord has done. His glory, His salvation, His righteousness aren't tucked away, hidden for only one people to enjoy. No, the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of God. The nations aren't beyond His awareness or outside of His reach.

This is important to remember as we continuing tracing the spiritual geography. Yes, the nations were inherited and the world became a place of spiritual and human rebellions, a world of conflict. Dark powers really do oppose our God. But this passage reminds us all of that didn't change who God is. He did not surrender His throne and He didn't lose the world He created. In short, He never stopped being King.

Living in this fractured world, we need our worldview focused by these truths. When things around us are in chaos and fractured, we must remember we haven't been abandoned and He isn't absent. We must call to our consciousness the fact that though there be rebellion, it hasn't taken complete control. In fact, the Psalmist declares the opposite. He sings and testifies to God's eternal and ultimate control. He shouts with praise the fact that God's saving rule continues moving forward and outward. He is still being revealed, still pressing toward the ends of the earth.

The nations may be contested, but they aren't forgotten. The King will be known to them all.

Are there places in your world that feel fractured, too fractured to be redeemed and salvaged? How can remembering God is still King over the whole earth help you to stand strong in the face of this reality?

Father, anchor me in Your rule and reign when the world feels dark and out of control. Help me to see reality through your eyes and not those of fear. I a grateful the ends of the earth are still in Your reach and your Kingdom marches on! Amen.