The courage of our simple faith in controversial times
One truth we Christians seem united on is that our faith is navigating very controversial times. We may differ in our responses to the controversies of this age which often clash with even our most basic beliefs held for generations, but there is no disagreement that these are testy times indeed. It is no longer enough to have faith but it is necessary to live in the courage of our simple faith in order to navigate these controversial times.
I have personally lived in six different decades and experienced undeniable changes in every one of them. I became a Christian shortly after my first decade of life at age eleven in 1958. Personal family struggles happened in the middle of the cold war, civil rights struggles, the Vietnam War, and the dawning of the hippie culture. No matter what challenged our lives in the sixties and seventies, we Christians based the hope of our lives and the convictions of our hearts on God's Word. Laws were still centered on the absolutes of our Judeo-Christian heritage: the Ten Commandments were posted on the walls of our schools and public buildings and prayer was the unashamed invocation at our cultural events. At that time, they were part of the fabric and interactions of society. They were the boundary markers that we all understood no matter our age.
Then, the mounting pressure of political correctness, always a contender of simple faith, grew bolder as we Christians fell prey to fear and complacency. The courage of our simple faith waned more and more.
Political correctness became the substitute teacher in place of the real teacher of truth. It took down the laws from our public walls through legislative challenge adjudicated by liberal judges. They rewrote laws from the bench not in the halls of Congress where our Constitution originally determined that action to take place.
Political correctness hatefully shouted down true freedom of speech with techniques reminiscent of backyard bullying. It taught contradictory irrational thinking by disallowing true debate. It boldly introduced subject matter in school books that robbed the innocence of our children. In short, it became a giant.
But we Christians know what we need when there are giants in the vicinity don't we?
No, it is not louder rhetoric, or bigger giants of our own. Surely, we have not forgotten.
It is what a young boy showed up with when he heard a big-mouthed giant taunting his nation's entire army. It is what a young Jewish captive who had been elevated to a high political position in ancient Babylon did in response to an unjust law passed by jealous men who wanted him out of power. They stood courageously in their simple faith. They continued to pray, to stand, to verbally respond in truth that was part of their entire soul. Their convictions did not diminish...they were demonstrated through the actions of doing right no matter what was going wrong. So must we. Let's live the courage of our simple faith in these controversial times.
I have personally lived in six different decades and experienced undeniable changes in every one of them. I became a Christian shortly after my first decade of life at age eleven in 1958. Personal family struggles happened in the middle of the cold war, civil rights struggles, the Vietnam War, and the dawning of the hippie culture. No matter what challenged our lives in the sixties and seventies, we Christians based the hope of our lives and the convictions of our hearts on God's Word. Laws were still centered on the absolutes of our Judeo-Christian heritage: the Ten Commandments were posted on the walls of our schools and public buildings and prayer was the unashamed invocation at our cultural events. At that time, they were part of the fabric and interactions of society. They were the boundary markers that we all understood no matter our age.
Then, the mounting pressure of political correctness, always a contender of simple faith, grew bolder as we Christians fell prey to fear and complacency. The courage of our simple faith waned more and more.
Political correctness became the substitute teacher in place of the real teacher of truth. It took down the laws from our public walls through legislative challenge adjudicated by liberal judges. They rewrote laws from the bench not in the halls of Congress where our Constitution originally determined that action to take place.
Political correctness hatefully shouted down true freedom of speech with techniques reminiscent of backyard bullying. It taught contradictory irrational thinking by disallowing true debate. It boldly introduced subject matter in school books that robbed the innocence of our children. In short, it became a giant.
But we Christians know what we need when there are giants in the vicinity don't we?
No, it is not louder rhetoric, or bigger giants of our own. Surely, we have not forgotten.
It is what a young boy showed up with when he heard a big-mouthed giant taunting his nation's entire army. It is what a young Jewish captive who had been elevated to a high political position in ancient Babylon did in response to an unjust law passed by jealous men who wanted him out of power. They stood courageously in their simple faith. They continued to pray, to stand, to verbally respond in truth that was part of their entire soul. Their convictions did not diminish...they were demonstrated through the actions of doing right no matter what was going wrong. So must we. Let's live the courage of our simple faith in these controversial times.
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