Francis Schaeffer, in his book “Escape From Reason”, illustrates that life is like a two-story house. The first story is like the lower order of man including the earth and all created things. The second story is the realm of God, of heaven, of spiritual and eternal things.
Francis Schaeffer continues to say that the problem is that we live too much on the first level – the level of natural things, and very little on the second level, with the presence of God and a consciousness of all things eternal. Our first level is well furnished with all the things we need to function in the natural world, and we spend much time arranging the furniture of this level to make it as comfortable a dwelling place as we can. Yet our second level goes unfurnished. Very little time is spent on the second level, so the lack of furnishings goes unnoticed. And yet the scriptures instruct us to “ … set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.” Colossians 3:1-2
So much of our time is spent on the first level that we are living most of our life from this earthly perspective. We lack spiritual depth and spiritual perception. We settle for an existence that merely flows well with the world’s system, missing much of the true life that God has intended for us while yet dwelling in this world. Certainly, there is need for some of our dwelling to be on this first level, functioning in this world with our lives and our work and our interaction with society. But were we to dwell much more on the second level as well as the first we would find how much more effectively we could live our lives in this world.
As Francis Schaeffer alludes, as we dwell much more on this dimension, we will see how much more we will THRIVE in our daily lives in this world. When we function with the governing principles of the kingdom of God (the Spiritual Realm) we will have great advantage in this physical realm. When we have the wisdom of God to apply to our daily lives it will help us to succeed in all our earthly pursuits.
I encourage you to spend more time on this “second level”, trusting that it will help you personally to THRIVE, in your understanding of all things Spiritual. Start your day with a short time in prayer, even if it is the “Our Father, who art in heaven…” and then open a Bible and see how Father will give you insight through His word to grow in your spiritual understanding and maturity, and to enable you to be more effective living out your life here on earth.
Proverbs 2:1–11 — 1 My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. 2 Tune your ears to wisdom and concentrate on understanding. 3 Cry out for insight and ask for understanding. 4 Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures. 5 Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. 6 For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. 7 He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. 8 He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him. 9 Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go. 10 For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. 11 Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.
