ARE WE DEGENERATING? No. 573
ARE WE DEGENERATING?
“Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see,
and ask for the old paths, where is the good way,
and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls”
(Jeremiah 6:15).
What I share with you now may seem archaic, even unbelievable in this society in which we live. However, it reveals how the bar of God's standard continues to lower in every generation.
I grew up as a child never entering a movie theater. It was considered evil. My mother, who has since passed away, never went into a movie theater in her life. Nor did my husband's mother! When I was older and began to go to a "good" movie, I remember saying to my mother, "Mother, you could come and see this movie. It is totally wholesome." But she replied, "Oh no, the Lord might come while I am there!" And she wouldn't want to be found in a movie theater if the Lord came for her!
But of course, when television came in, all standards went out the door. Now, many Christians receive into their homes all the filth and rubbish of the world. They watch adultery and fornication—and worse, without batting an eye! Many Christians go off to every new movie that comes without any discretion! No wonder we don't see the power of God moving in our midst today. We are a lukewarm people—overcome with mediocrity, complacency, ordinariness, passivity, and middle-of-the-road blindness!
What about church? When I was a young girl, we worshipped together as a family in the morning. We would never think of missing church—rain, hail or snow! Never any excuses! We were committed to the faithful g Hebrews 10:24). We came home for lunch and then we children walked back for Sunday School in the afternoon (a couple of miles). Then we attended the Sunday evening service.
Next generation . . . instead of three times a day, we got down to two services—morning and evening church. Now, we are down to one service in the morning, and that's it! Help, with so many Christian families no longer committed the gathering of God’s people every week, will we even have one service in the next generation?
What about family life? We have so many wonderful godly families in the nation who are raising godly children. And yet sadly, across Christendom, many families have the mindset of the world. They have limited their families to two children. They are so excited when they have their son and daughter, and think, that’s it! The current average number of children per family in USA is 1.9 per family and that’s among Christians as well as the secular world.
I remember talking to an elderly gentleman on one of my flights. He told me that his father came from a family of ten children, and he came from a family of six. “How many children did you have?” I asked. “Two,” he replied. Very typical. Ten, six, two! Every generation has less children. Degeneration. Falling away from God’s original plan and purpose for mankind. We have become victims of a humanistic society. The blind leading the blind into the ditch!
It used to be normal to sit together as a family to eat meals. To communicate with one another. In our busy lifestyles today many families don’t even sit around the table to eat together! If they do, they bring their iPhones to the table! They don’t even communicate face to face. Now that really is degeneration!
Perhaps the statement is true: “Each generation is one generation away from degeneration.” In the midst of lethargy, tolerance of sin, and deception, let's keep seeking after God and His truth with all our hearts.
Dear mother, you are the transmitter of God’s truth and His ways to the next generation. If the next generation forget God’s ways, it is the mothers who are to blame! Wow. That’s a load. But it’s true. God has given us the powerful responsibility to communicate His ways to our children, our grandchildren, and the next generation.
I am always challenged by Isaiah 59:21 (HCSB): “As for Me, this is My covenant with them, says the LORD: ‘My Spirit who is on you, and My words that I have it in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouth of your children, or from the mouth of your children’s children, from now on and forever,’ says the LORD.’”
We must do more than getting into their hearts. We must get it into their mouths so that keeps coming forth out of their mouths to each succeeding generation.
NANCY CAMPBELL
PRAYER
“Dear Father, save me from dropping the baton. Help me to be faithful to pass on your truth and Your ways to my children and succeeding generations. Amen.”
AFFIRMATION:
I am diligently implanting God’s truth and His ways into the MINDS, the HEARTS, and the MOUTHS of my children and future generations.Don’t miss the podcast for wives and mothers each week:
LIFE TO THE FULL w/ Nancy Campbell