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Listed below are some of the Newspaper Articles written over five years as I was a columnist. These articles appeared in the Scripps Newspapers in South East Florida. There's a variety of subjects designed to minister to a secular as well as born again reader. Here are some of the cream of the crop and I hope you enjoy them. Scroll down to read... |
VOTE INTEGRITY NOT CHARISMA
By Rick Kendall correspondent For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not mere men? What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe — as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. — First Corinthians 3:4-8. The presidential race is in full swing and President Bush and John Kerry are already campaigning hard. Political cartoonists are depicting these men in every shade of satire imaginable. Their supporters describe them as supermen while detractors try to bring them down with the kryptonite of mud slinging. But before it all gets too messy, we should remember the presidential race is about more than the popularity of a man. It is about honoring the integrity of the office and what that office represents. After the last contest, between George Bush and Al Gore, that fact was lost in the shuffle of ballot disputes. With the close count in Florida, some became divided over chads and the whole thing became personal. It was more about men than it was about the presidency. Thank goodness one of the candidates finally stepped aside for the good of the country and graciously congratulated a new president. Scripture does give us direction in these matters. In First Corinthians, for example, we find an account of a popularity contest between two leaders of the early church — Paul and Apollos. Then, as now, people were passionately divided over which of these men were more worthy of being followed. The debate was over personality. The crowds took sides and became hateful toward each other in defense of their favorites. The thing to remember, Paul wrote, was that both he and Apollos were "mere men," and that the bigger picture should be kept in mind. Likewise, political debates go on between people all over the country and diversity of political opinions have always brought balance to our democratic system of government. We shouldn't focus on "who," but on "what" is represented by each man in the current presidential race. Using stereotypes like "left" and "right" wing and going negative are divisive and obscure the importance of choosing a candidate who can uphold the integrity of the office. I'm as patriotic as anybody in America, but I'm not voting on the charismatic image of a candidate or a party. Instead I will rely on my convictions about who can best guide our country in a direction of righteousness, someone who stands on integrity, truth, and Godly principles with wisdom to guide a nation into greater days with vision. That should not divide me from my fellow citizens who differ in political views, but it should be celebrated as a voice of diversity in a country of choice. As with Paul and Apollos, (or Bush and Kerry) it's not about the charisma of the men, but it's their service to a process. One sows, and another reaps, but it's God who gives the increase. ________________________________________________________ Fashioned statement By Rick Kendall correspondent The saying goes that "the clothes make the man (or woman)." But what does that mean? One clue can be found in uniforms. Uniforms are clothes, but they are clothes that often convey authority. Soldiers and police are examples. In those cases, clothing communicates a degree of rule. When you add badges and stripes to those uniforms, the perception of power is increased. The truth is, there are messages in the fashions we wear. If a police officer tried to direct traffic in a mechanic's uniform, you wouldn't take him seriously, and if he was also wearing a sailor's cap with a cowboy vest, you would conclude he was probably going through an identity crisis. As funny as that sounds, we can all get that disoriented about who we are and what role we fill in life. Yes, what we wear has meaning, hence the word "fashion," which literally means "to be fashioned." This is also true on a spiritual level. We should be fashioned after God, but sometimes we get so loaded down with other people's concepts about us that we take on their fashions. The spiritual clothes God gives neither weigh us down nor bind us from freedom to move in our purpose. But when we step outside of that purpose and become something we're not, then — like the police officer wearing a mechanic's outfit confusion can mess with our identity and "fashion" us into bondage. There is a solution. Members of the Body Network, which I oversee, have dedicated the month of March to intense prayer and fasting. We're not just doing it for our health (although it will surely cleanse us physically), nor are we doing it as a religious ceremony. We are setting aside this time to lay down all the stuff that weighs us down, and the fashions that hinder our spiritual movement. We seek to rid ourselves of all those preconceived notions that clutter our thinking, and be clothed in the direction and clear purpose of God. This is biblical; in Isaiah 58, God speaks about a kind of fasting that loosens chains of injustice and unties the cords that bind us and sets the oppressed free. Fasting, the passage says, is a time of giving to the poor. The God-ordained fast is a time toabstain from foods, but it's also a time to redefine who we are and what God has called us to be. It's a time to wear only the clothes of purpose he designed us to live and move in. Isaiah goes on to say that doing this will help us see clearly who we are and where we are. __________________________________________________ CHECK THE INGREDIENTS By Rick
Kendall correspondent My wife has done extensive research on eating the right foods and doing the best exercises to develop a healthy body. She has me drinking protein shakes and taking the right vitamins and supplements to cleanse my system. Along with this, she bought a massive exercise machine that offers about 65 different ways to work out. Just assembling the machine (that came in about 1,000 tiny pieces) built up my arms. In my quest to watch my eating, I looked to the health food rack in the store and found "Power Bars." On the label was a picture of a muscular guy and girl with big smiles on their faces while they flexed for the camera. Subconsciously, I hoped to look like the folks on the label after eating the energy bar, but at the very least, I hoped that eating the protein-drenched bar would give me a boost. Then I looked at the ingredients. I recognized some of the items listed, such as granola, trail mix, and so on, but then I saw stuff like sucralose, maltodextrim, hydrolyzed collegen, and even a word that was so long I couldn't spell it. I was sure I saw the word "methane" in the middle of one of the ingredients. These things might even be healthy, but I had no idea what they were or how they could be "all natural." It is one thing to look on a cereal box and see ingredients that only nuclear scientists would understand, but you'd like to think a protein power bar would be a trusted friend. First Corinthians 5:6 says that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Leaven is an ingredient that consists of old dough in a high state of fermentation. When leaven is mixed with the new dough, it causes it to puff up and swell. The use of leaven was strictly forbidden in all offerings made to the Lord in the Old Testament. Was this just another legalistic rule? No, it was representation of a vital principle concerning purity and commitment to God. Daily, we need to be discerning about the ingredients of things in our lives. The label might say "all natural," but the ingredient list exposes the true content. This applies to the foods we eat, but also to things we hear, what we see, and anything that we consume physically, mentally or spiritually. Someone might have the label of "preacher" or "rabbi," but when you listen to what he or she says, you might find the leaven of compromise, acceptance of alternative lifestyles or even vain philosophies. God's love reaches everybody, but it washes the leavening sin out so people can find their destiny with healthy ingredients for living. We should never buy something because the label looks great. Check the ingredients and compare them to the principles of the Bible — God's Word. Rick Kendall is co-founder of The Body Network, a Port St. Lucie-based interdenominational fellowship of Treasure Coast churches and ministries. ___________________________________________ Sneezeguards
By Rick Kendall correspondent Have you ever struggled with those buffet or salad bar sneeze guards? I have watched people twist and stretch in all different positions and press their faces to the glass to get at that macaroni pasta. Although a sneeze guard is appreciated for sanitary reasons, it seems there ought to be a way to protect the food without causing major physical and mental stress. Sometimes I think those things are meant to guard us from getting the food. The sneeze guard has an analogy in our spiritual lives. Have you ever noticed that sneeze guards allow us to clearly see what we're reaching for, but are also placed between us and the goal in such a way as to prevent us from obtaining it? In some cases, a "sneeze guard" could be helpful when what we want is not really good for us. I guess we could call this a "sin guard." Some obstructions placed in our path are good for us because they keep us separated from potential harm. What about those "sneeze guards" that keep us separated from good things? How can we know what's good for us? One goal that is guaranteed to be good is the pursuit of knowing God. Psalm 34:8 tells us to taste and see that the Lord is good. Jesus, the living Word of God, even calls himself "the bread of life." Sadly, there are guards in place to keep us from God. Some people put their own barrier up, feeling unworthy to approach God. They might be able to gaze through the glass frame at His goodness, but think they cannot partake unless they clean up their act. In other cases it is churches that impose the restrictions. They throw up a lot of hoops and rules people must jump through to get to God. It's true there are principles to walking with God, but it is not difficult to reach Him. Romans 8:39 makes this point clearly. It says: "Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Through Jesus, God has forgiven us of the sins that separated us from Him. In essence, there is no more "sneeze guard" separating us from what we really need. So with the barriers removed, why not keep coming back to the table, over and over again, to be filled with His bounty? _____________________________________________
Resolutions By Rick Kendall correspondent It's hard to believe, but 2003 is almost over, and that annual time of intense reflection is about to begin. As I look back on the past year and my accomplishments in it, I am reminded of the classic story of Ebenezer Scrooge, whose visits to his past and future inspired him to make positive changes in his present life.
Sadly, too many of us will become fixated on the past, on bad memories, and will go into the new year holding onto baggage and gloomy thoughts. The tendency will be to make New Year's resolutions with last year's failed resolutions in mind. Memories can be sweet moments we cherish or painful moments that torture us. To break free of the bondage of painful, negative memories, we need to note that memories are history, and history need not be the definition of who we are now. The exciting thing about the past is that it's in the past. In other words, it's done with — over. The apostle Paul addresses this topic in Second Corinthians 3:10-18, when he writes about the "veil" on the minds of those who can see only where they have been, and assess themselves by the hurtful memories that plague them. Paul went on to say that when that veil is removed from the mind, the afflicted will behold a much more positive revelation. "Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold," Paul writes. Although our past refers to where we were, it's our future that should define and shape us in our lives today. God, through Jesus, paid our debt to past failures. The cross delivered us from the cycle of bad, old memories and the veil of limitations and brings us fully into a new day of destiny. Verse 18 sums it up best: "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." ________________________________________________ Free Gift By Rick Kendall, newspaper article for 12/13/03 Here we are again at this holiday season and the massive shopping rush has begun. I’m not necessarily one of those who harp on how commercialized Christmas has become, but at the same time there seems to be way too much stress and debt involved in this time of the year just to purchase “stuff”. The free gift of Jesus birth was the most pure expression of God’s love ever manifested on the earth. Ephesians 2:8 says; “..It is the gift of God”. The wise men brought gifts to the baby in the manger, because they approached Him as King of kings, and it was understood that you never approach a king without a gift. Giving a “gift” has taken on a whole different connotation than the treasures the wise men brought to Jesus. I went to a super-center store to get a small item, and was hit with the dazzle of Christmas decorations, loud holiday music, and overwhelming crowds of people. I never knew carts could hold so much stuff without falling over, and the key to a safe shopping experience is swift navigational skills through the massive traffic jams inside and outside the store. Exhaustion and aggravation are intense emotions that are displayed on the faces of everybody standing in the long check out lines. Debt is a big factor in most “gift” giving and it goes deeper than charging too much on our credit cards. Many will be buying “gifts” for people they don’t even want to buy gifts for, but they feel indebted because those people will probably buy something for them. The biggest oxymoron ever spoken is; “I owe them a gift”. A gift is a gift, because it’s freely given. It seems after all is said and done that the greatest gift we could give is ourselves. Every Christmas morning I look around the room into the faces of my wife and kids and see them as tremendous gifts in my life. The store bought gifts under the tree seem to have little value in comparison to the priceless treasure of my family. How could store bought presents compete with the treasure in these people who are gifts in my life? My family has gone through so much. My wife and I went through terrible times including three years of separation, and our kids faced so much stress, but God restored my wife and I, and our kids are completely restored. What gift could I buy to express my appreciation for a reconciled marriage and family? God sent His Son, Jesus, as a free gift into this debt ridden world, to redeem us, to give us life, and restore to us all those things that devil scattered and took away. We couldn’t do anything to deserve it, we didn’t have enough to ever pay for it, and God gave it freely without indebting us. With all God has given to me, what gift can I bring to His Son, Jesus? He is my King, and I must bring a gift from my heart to Him. The greatest gift I can give to Jesus is the free gift of myself in total adoration and thanksgiving to Him. The pure joy of this is that He freely gives Himself to me too. That’s the gift that keeps on giving. _____________________________________________ No Condemnation By Rick Kendall Newspaper Column for November 15, 2003
In the news recently there was a story about a Nigerian mother sentenced to death by stoning for adultery. As inhumane as stoning sounds, it is not new, but goes back many centuries. John chapter 8 in the Bible records the account of Pharisees bringing a woman to Jesus who had been caught in the act of adultery. These religious men quoted the law that required her to be stoned for the sin of adultery. Jesus responded by saying; He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her. One by one each of the men dropped their rocks, walked away and not one stone was cast. Jesus looked at the woman and said; Where are your accusers? Has anyone accused you? She responded, “No”, and then Jesus said; Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more.
Was Jesus condoning sin? No, but instead of condemning, He forgave her and said, Go and sin no more. While God does not condemn people, He certainly will not condone sin. Actually, it’s sin that condemns people, but God sent His Word to make people free from sin.
There is a big difference between condoning and forgiving. Legalistic people are quick to condemn those caught in sin and bury them up to their necks to stone them. Some of these self righteous law enforcers would say that if they don’t condemn it would be the same as condoning, but Jesus said; I don’t condemn you, go and sin no more. Churches can either look down their noses at people for their sin, or they can extend a hand of love and deliverance that frees them from their sins.
In these days some don’t want to call it “sin”, but they’d rather call it “mistakes”, or “situational ethics”. Some would question; “What is sin?“ In years past, some churches designated everything from habits to violation of certain dress codes as sin. The fact is that the “deeds” are only resulting symptoms of an inward condition. In the past some churches dealt with the symptoms and didn’t help people with the root of their problems. This made sinful roots deeper and more complicated, producing a greater variety of problems. Today we see a society that, in some cases, have seared their consciences by laughing at moral values and broadcasting profanity, illicit sex, and vain philosophies through media such as TV & movies.
Some people have suffered years of hate and rejection, deciding to identify with their “sins” in defiance to those “rock throwers” who treated them like dirt. It doesn’t hurt people to experience conviction but it does a lot of damage to condemn people who need God’s love and help. Some in the church community have gone to the other extreme to condone some sins by calling it “alternate lifestyles” or “preferences” in hopes of winning people back into church, but this also does nothing to help people out of bondage. God’s love does not condemn people, nor does it condone sin, but it forgives us and changes our lives. The Bible, was not written to bash people over the head, but at the same time, God is not adjusting His principles to fit our “lifestyles” either. The good news of the Gospel is that God sent His Son to bring change into our lives according to His blueprint. So let’s lay down the stones and extend a hand that reaches out to people, not condoning sin, but bringing God’s love that forgives and changes lives, starting with our own. ________________________________________ Can You Hear Me Now? By Rick Kendall correspondent Deuteronomy 4:29 says: "When you seek (call on) the Lord thy God, you shall find Him (and connect) if you seek Him with all your heart." This verse reminds me of cell phone technology. I remember standing in line at the doughnut shop one day with a man who had his hands in his pockets and seemed to be talking to himself. And he was speaking loudly. I started to feel sorry for this guy; I wondered if maybe he had lost his marbles. Then, just as I was thinking of alerting the police officers who were also in line, this fellow pulled from his ear a plug that was attached to a thin wire. He then pressed a button on a tiny cell phone that had been concealed in his jacket. That was a wake-up call for me. Now I see people all the time who look as if they're talking to themselves. Still, it is a bit unsettling to have someone standing behind you in line who's staring out into space, perfectly quiet, and then without warning burst into laughter or say: "So, how's it going?" Or there are the times in restaurants when suddenly a cell phone blurts out "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" or the theme from "Star Wars." You watch as people fumble to find their phones. Then they find that they can't hear who's calling, jump up out of the seat and make a mad dash out the door to go to get a better signal. And we call this "convenience"? A cell phone commercial comes to mind. It shows a man walking in every location imaginable and repeatedly saying; "Can you hear me now? Good!" All of this cell phone business relates to our faith. There is a call from heaven you should be getting directly in your ear and heart. No accessories needed. No calling plans or roaming charges. No static. Just a clear signal in which God is speaking to His kids. Remember the verse from Deuteronomy? We don't have to try to yell through cell phones to talk to God. Instead, it is through the work Jesus did for us that we can access a clear signal to God. He shed is blood on the cross as a clear signal that God loves and forgives his children. All we have to do is seek Him and we will find Him. We will get through every time. That signal overcomes the distractions and interference of every-day life. You should opt for that plan because God loves His children and He's calling to remind us that He's there for us. So when God says, "Can you hear me now?" you'll be able to answer "yes." "Good!" Rick Kendall is co-founder of The Body Network, a Port St. Lucie-based interdenominational fellowship of Treasure Coast churches and ministries ________________________________________________________ Church Announcements
By Rick
Kendall correspondent You know the routine. On Sunday, churches will open their doors for services, and at some point will come the inevitable, often-awkward reading of announcements. These items often stick out like sore thumbs in a service because no one is quite sure where they should be inserted. Some churches have invested in sophisticated technology to flash numerous announcements up on a screen before services actually begin. Even so, they often feel the need to have a living, breathing person announce these events to make sure the worshippers got the message. Other congregations use the old, reliable church bulletin to make announcements. Using full color clip art with fancy fonts, the leadership hopes the announcements will jump out off the page.Spoken announcements might sound something like this: "OK, we've got a lot going on this week so I'm going to move quickly through these announcements today. Let's see, OK: tonight's choir rehearsal has been moved up to 5 p.m. because Mary wants to meet with all the ladies on that little squabble between Clara and Judy during last week's hospitality meeting. Also don't forget Monday is work night here at the church and we'll supply the pizza. Tuesday at 7 p.m. the new carpet committee will meet on the new carpet. Wednesday's Bible study has been cancelled due to low turn out, but we will have a mandatory leadership social instead, and we'll supply the pizza. Thursday at 7 p.m. we will form a committee to monitor all the committees. Friday is family night here at the church, so bring your whole family to the service and we will send the kids to their service while the men and women are split into two groups and come together again later for healing. Then we all gather again on Sunday to start it all off again." OK, that may be a little exaggerated. But the amount of things is realistic. And maybe that's why church people forget the announcements: there are just too many of them. And that could be because there's too much going on in some of our churches. The question is, is all of this stuff necessary? Many pastors have dropped a lot of programs in their churches that needlessly filled every day of the week. They have realized that church people, especially those dedicated ones, need quality time at home with their families. Some statistics suggest that divorces are higher in Christian marriages. This may be the result of many factors, but part of the reason could be that great church members have lost sight of how to be family members at home. The priority order needs to be dedication to God, then family, then church fellowship. Families are not there for the church entity, but the church must be there to build the families with great church services, and also quality home time. For a long time some churches focused on pulling inward, but now churches are equipping people to send them outward into their homes, communities, and the marketplace as strong lights for Jesus Christ. Here's an announcement people would remember: "Today, following the service, you are needed at home for quality time with your family."
Rick Kendall is co-founder of The Body Network, a Port St. Lucie-based interdenominational fellowship of Treasure Coast churches and ministries. ___________________________________________________ Pre-approval by God has no fine print By Rick Kendall
correspondent "You have been preapproved for up to $50,000!" Wow! You jump up and down and gather the family. Someone has seen fit to offer you indebtedness of up to $50,000. Also, in the same day, the mail delivers preapproval for several credit cards. One of the companies actually sends a beautiful plastic credit card with your name already on it. It means so much to be preapproved, doesn't it? Before you even ask for approval, somebody finds out how valuable you are and gets together with company officials for the purpose of sending you a letter of approval. Days pass and finally a letter arrives from your new credit card company. But it isn't what you expected: "Declined due to your current financial situation." Or, it might say that due to your current credit status, the company will loan you only $100 at 50-percent interest. Either way, you have been dumped, disregarded and deleted. How could this be? Didn't they say you were part of their "loan family"? You thought you were preapproved. Another aggravating kind of form letters are the ones declaring "you may already be a winner." Whoopee. All you have to do, the letters say, is take the key that's pasted on the full color photo of the winning vehicle and go to their car lot and see if it fits that car. So maybe you go, slip the key in and — behold — it doesn't crank the ignition. One of the salesmen looks at you in a way that seems to say "Sorry, I guess you're a loser on this one, but try again soon!" But wait, the salesman adds that they just happen to have a honey of a deal on one of their other cars. It's about then that the feeling of rejection is joined by one of being used. Is it any wonder so many of us are cynical about promises of approval and acceptance? We've heard so many marketing approaches and schemes that we've become hard-hearted and built walls around ourselves. Although understandable, it can also be tragic if it leads us to miss out on what really could be the real thing. The fact is, we have been preapproved by someone greater than any loan company, and it really is "100-percent guaranteed." God himself preapproved us as worthy of his wealth and promises, through the sacrifice Jesus paid to qualify us. All we have to do is accept it and turn away from the cycle of sin that got us into so much debt to start with. And with this incredible offer comes no fine print, no payment plans or hidden interest charges. The fact is that the whole thing has been paid in full on our behalf. There are no applications to fill out because God already knew us before us were formed in our mother's womb. The truth is that we really are winners already. _______________________________________________ Teenagers build army for God By Rick Kendall correspondent As soon as you enter the door, you are hit with a blast of energy, sound and music that reaches deep down into your heart and soul. But this is no club or disco, it is instead a room filled with teenagers manifesting a powerful passion in worship and praise to God. And they are part of a growing number of young people who are a rising army of champions in Jesus' name. There is a move of God shaking the earth, and it's coming through the youth. They are smart, strong and sensitive to what God is doing today. We read about troubled youth in the media, and although there are those wrapped into drugs, illicit sex and violence, that is not an accurate picture of many teens. There are growing numbers of youth committed to maintaining sexual purity and walking in honor and clear moral values. The truth is, young people are bringing a fresh dynamic back into churches across the world, and actually leading the way into a deeper understanding of relationship with God. Church pastors in South Florida, recognizing how vital young people are, are providing entire buildings for teenagers and college-age youth to worship God. There are churches bringing youth pastors to the forefront of recognition, sending youth outreach teams into nations, and making room for area bands to come and play loud, strong, and free to the glory of God. One intercessory ministry allows children and youth to draw creative pictures of what they're receiving from God in the services, and youth are emerging as major leaders in the arts. The youth coming to God are not playing traditional church games anymore. Although they respect genuine authority, they look for truth, integrity and honesty. Being in the same room with these young people while they worship sweeps me off my feet like an ocean of God's love. Our son Ricky is 22 in physical age, but years beyond in wisdom and earnest passion for God. Our son James is 18 and one of the most sensitive, smart and loving people I know. Our daughter Victoria is 15 and has the heart of compassion and discernment for the needs of people and walks in great insight. All three of them sing and worship God from the depths of their hearts. They are surpassing us in so many ways, and it's wonderful. Passing the torch to them does not mean our generation is done, but it means we have a whole new role as mentors and counselors. Watch out, because these young men and women of God have new ideas, crazy concepts and innovative vision, and we must cheer them on. In fact, First Timothy 4:12 says: Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Let's take time to hear their hearts, cultivate their trust, and mobilize their passion for God. Just standing in the same room with them can take a few years off some older folks and renew passion, so crank up the volume, turn on the beat, and let's join in with the youth who are setting the pace for the glory of God for breakthrough.
Rick Kendall is co-founder of The Body Network, a Port St. Lucie-based interdenominational fellowship of Treasure Coast churches and ministries Reality Check, by Rick Kendall Article for News: September 6th, 2003 Over the past few years there’s been an influx of “reality” TV shows. These are called reality only because they are really happening to real people, but in fact, there’s very little reality in any of these programs. First there’s the “reality” TV show that gathers a few dozen beautiful women together for one bachelor to choose from. That’s reality? Then there’s the one where a bunch of average people race by walking, biking, running, swimming, crawling, and skiing their way fifty two thousand miles to reach a goal and a prize. That’s reality? Well, come to think of it, it does sound a little like I-95 at rush hour. The “reality” program that is really strange is the one where contestants are locked up in a house for a few months to live together and interact as total strangers. Well, then maybe that describes a lot of families these days, but seriously these TV programs are a lot of things, but reality is not one of them. There used to be a saying when things got out of control, and it was; “It’s time for a reality check!” Reality, in that connotation meant; “Let’s get a grip on some priorities and some foundational footing.” The reality (TV) being promoted these days is more like fantasy being thrown at both the viewer and the contestant, to make money. We are living in a day when it is hard for some to determine reality from fantasy. Even movies are promoting scripts as depicting reality, wanting us to believe what we’re viewing is normal life. Most of the time parents are being displayed as idiots while teens are being depicted as gangsters or sex objects with no regard for morality. Most scripts have a bed scene between two people who are not married as if to say this is normal with no moral or emotional complications. Even the music industry, across the board (in all styles), are writing lyrics of adultery, infidelity, drugs and violence as though it were painting a reflection of everyday normal life You may say; “Hey, wake up, some of that really is going on”, but there is a difference between reality that’s a current fact, and reality that’s an eternal truth. It’s a fact that marriages are suffering with almost half ending in divorce, but the truth is that God has foundations in His Word to manifest a solid unbreakable bond between husband and wife, and those discovering this reality are growing strong families. The facts say that some teenagers and older people are becoming statistics of rape, drugs, and sexual diseases, but the truth is that God has established absolute destiny that brings life, and success to those choosing His path. The facts are that the world is in sad shape, but the truth is that it doesn’t have to be that way for who choose God‘s reality. Some have faced reality through circumstantial facts, and become bitter and depressed, but others have overcome the statistical facts with reality based in God’s revealed truth, and enjoy principles God set forth to overcome facts. Jesus said; You shall know the truth (genuine reality) and the truth shall make you free (from current facts due to sin). So, the next time you turn on the TV and see someone depicting reality by eating bugs or being dropped in a pit for big prize money, just smile and realize no matter how weird the world gets, the truth is that God has given life more abundant that really stands sure in shaky times. _________________________________________________ |
