Are we progressing as a nation, a world, and how does one measure that?
You have probably heard this information before but it brings to light one answer to the question above. The top public school discipline problems in 1941 were: talking, chewing gum, making noises, running in the halls, getting out of turn in line, dressing improperly, and littering. In 1986 the same poll revealed the top problems as: rape, robbery, assault, burglary, arson, bombings, murder, suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, gang warfare, abortion, and venereal diseases.” It’s really not that safe to have your kids in public school.
And we think things are better?
It’s like the false feeling that we are somehow safer in America than we would be in Iraq. Overall that’s true, unless you live in one of the six cities in America where violent deaths are greater than in Iraq. When will we admit that we’re not on a good flight pattern: it’s a flight that’s headed for a bad landing.
Many of the religious leaders in the land are proclaiming Peace, peace, but as with Ezekiel, there really isn’t any. Others are proclaiming the judgment of God is at hand. But must it be either-or? I think not, at least not now. Today is a day to seek God. Today is a day of transformation. But we can’t attain His glory for our lives with our own thinking There must come those moments, and many, when we realize just how desperately we need Him.
What habits have you changed recently? Has anything changed?
What has fallen away, off, and no longer interests you?
In those last two questions we come to grips with the reality and truth of where we are. What I see in most of the church in America is a reverse of what we saw in the public school survey above. We trade in our HOT SINS for the subtle, self-righteous ones. In a land of prosperity, some tithe when their gratitude and earning power should dictate double or triple their giving. I believe J.C. Penny was a good example. In a land of diversity, we opt to consider our many pleasurable options for holidays and weekend, rather than sacrificing for those who have no such luxuries. In a season of prosperity, we are not saving for the lean years, but rather mortgaging our future against them.
Let’s face it. We can’t get enough! We simply cannot be satisfied with what we have.
In the name of advancing the Kingdom, we but advance our own agendas. They all sound so good. I typed down a couple and then felt the condemnation some would receive by naming a few, so I deleted them and leave it to you and the Spirit to figure them out: should you want to.
So, back to the beginning. Are we progressing? You tell me.
I know many are and I pray we don’t prematurely stop. Jesus didn’t. How can we?
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