The Paradoxes We Face...

Do you ever think about how much our society has changed over the last 50-60 years? Your answer to that may depend on how old you are! Was life ever as it was in "Leave it to Beaver" or "Happy Days"? Well, it may not have been that idealistic, but it was different. The things we value and our ideas about those things are radically different. I believe these changes hinge on our collective and individual relationship with Jesus Christ.

Consider these passages from God's Word:

• Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path. Psalm 119:105

• "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matt. 7:23-14

• Do not turn to the right nor to the left; turn your foot from evil. Prov. 4:27
  
  I believe that as a people, we have veered from His path. Let's consider two areas.
  

  
  Our culture of politics is a strange paradox of sorts. We want more social services, better education standards, and a stronger defense. However no one seems to want higher taxes, nor does anyone want to make financial reductions in other areas. What’s a government to do? We are a culture of excesses, spoiled by the lavishness of our lifestyles, confused between our wants and needs. The things we want have become the things we must have! Ours is a society so far removed from the real poverty of our world, that not possessing the latest trends in fashion or pleasure, renders one poor. This political paradox has been costly to the backbone of our society, the family.

  
  That cost has been high. The average traditional family unit does not look the same as in the generations before ours. Gone is the assumption that every child in the classroom goes home to both parents. Gone are the days when most families gather every evening around the dinner table to break bread and share the goings-on of their day. Gone is the notion that most families will be in worship on Sunday morning. Gone are the days….

  
  Speaking of Sunday morning worship, our culture of spirituality is also a strange paradox. Our airways contain more spiritual programming than at anytime in history. Being spiritual, not religious, is as in vogue as wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt. Yet, our society is more violent, more divided, more materialistic, and more absent of conscience than ever before. My generation, which is following the Greatest Generation, has seemed to disavow the spiritual Truth that guided their fathers to greatness. How did that happen? What went wrong? Why are the values of those parents not embraced by their children?

  
  This modern spirituality has led us to a paradox of values. We value human life, yet we lead the world in the number of abortions. We put men on trial for murdering their unborn children, yet we don’t recognize the viability of a fetus. We embrace “family values,” yet 50% of all marriages fail. If history tells us anything, it is that this republic, which we so cherish and that gives us the freedom to change, was founded upon Biblical values. And now those Biblical values cannot be displayed in our classrooms or on courthouse lawns. Some would have us believe that we can no longer express those values in public displays or prayers. Then we wonder why our children are confused and look elsewhere for stability in their lives. Yes, a paradox of values.

  
  Actually, these paradoxes have evolved into a single crisis. A crisis of Faith. We've gotten off His beaten path!

  
  How do we find our way back? By reading His Word, pondering His Word, and living His Word!

  
  Grace to all as we walk His path,