A Growing Problem
When half the children your kids go to school with don’t have a dad at home—that’s a problem!
The absence of a father—or his leadership even if he is in the home—is a growing problem—one we need to address.
One our country needs to address!
There are too many absentee dads and too many disengaged dads.
There was a time when sexually active teens were not seen in a positive way in our schools.
Today, if they’re a virgin, they’re ridiculed.
The result?
A high percentage of babies born to unwed mothers.
And that usually means—children with no dad.
No father image, no person to help shape them.
Every little girl and every little boy need not only the benefit of a mom, but they desperately need a dad.
Let’s commit ourselves to work to preserve the family—mom and dad!
Important Issue in Culture
What would you say is the most important issue in our culture today?
I propose that the answer is: Values in our society.
Good values, and good people championing them.
Listen to this description of King Hezekiah in 2nd Chronicles 31:20:
“This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God. In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly.”
Oh it’s possible you can have bad people that champion good values, but it doesn’t happen all that often.
It’s a lot more likely to have bad people championing bad values.
So what’s the solution?
Godly homes that produce godly, stable people with biblical understanding based on godly values.
At the Epicenter
What’s at the epicenter of your life?
There’s a quick way to find out!
Here are some questions for you!
How do you spend your time? Your energy?
What’s the focus of your finances? Your giving?
How do you feel about your possessions? What about the use of your gifts and talents? What about your actions? Your thought life, even the words that you say?
Take a good look at your answers—where does the epicenter lay?
Where’s your focus? It’ll tell you a lot about your priorities—about what you regard as truly important.
Jesus said where your heart is—your treasure will be as well!
It really doesn’t matter what we “say” our priorities are—it’s where the rubber meets the road!
That’s where the real tale is told!
The last question? Who’s at the epicenter of your life?
What You Believe
Can we believe one way and vote another?
We may be seeing a lot of this in the coming weeks and months!
I asked a politician, “Are you pro-life?”
“Yes.”
I asked, “Suppose there’s a tie on Roe vs. Wade, overturning the legislation that allows doctors to perform abortions legally—how would you vote?”
He said, “I’d vote to continue it and keep it legal.”
“Then don’t tell me you’re pro-life.”
And he said, “Oh but I am personally.”
If you’re personally pro-life, but you’re not legislatively doing anything about it—you’re worthless to that pre-born baby.
You can’t believe one way and vote another as a politician or a citizen.
In a monarchy or dictatorship, people can do nothing about the government.
But in a democracy, we vote politicians into power.
Make sure what you believe determines how you vote!
Honesty/Integrity/Loyalty
When biblical values don’t matter—things get ugly.
Democracy cannot function—long-term—without biblical values of honesty, integrity and loyalty.
It’s key to understanding massive corruption in business, in government, in all aspects of community and public life.
Historically, America’s values have been Christian and biblical values. You don’t rip people off. You don’t lie or steal. And if you do, you admit it as sin. You repent. You pay the price for wrong-doing.
Honesty, integrity, loyalty.
Whether America succeeds or fails depends on the extent to which we embrace these biblical, Christian values.
There’s no getting around it!
Some would say, you can’t fully appreciate something until you’ve lost it. I hope that’s not true.
Now’s the time to preserve what we have.
Now’s the time to pray for God’s blessing; to embrace biblical values!
Christian Biblical Values
Some things are worth defending.
Knowing what they are makes all the difference.
Admittedly you have to pick your battles . . . but where’s the point when you stand up and fight for what you believe?
And what ultimately is worth fighting for?
Your faith, your family, your freedoms?
You stand up when you’re being diminished or others are being diminished in their value . . . when what God has ordained and established is being diminished . . . when you’re being forced to compromise or to be complicit in compromise . . . when untruth is lifted up as truth . . . when injustice is committed—you stand up.
Here’s the point!
We’re to stand up and fight about truth and injustice, not based on our definition of truth, or our definition of injustice.
No! A definition based on God and His Word!
