Category: Wildman Journey (Page 43 of 86)

Men are conflicted about  the NFL.   It has become a platform for politics and grievance.  Men are upset because one of their established bastions of male bonding and celebration, Pro football, is being invaded by a national controversy regarding the flag and the national anthem.  “We stand,” writes David French, “in respect because the flag represents a specific set of values and principles: that all men are created equal and that we are endowed with our Creator with certain unalienable rights.”

This controversy has forced me to elevate my fondness for  Pro football.  I enjoy watching and have used my interest as a bridge to connect with men.  But I need to  view NFL football more as casual entertainment that I can live without.  It can’t be a preoccupation in my life.  I wonder with John Stonestreet, why we have this present national preoccupation  when there are so many other pressing issues to focus on.  Could it be that we are witnessing a “descent into triviality.”  I certainly feel this when I listen to sport talk radio as I drive long miles to see our children’s families. Sport talk is dead serious about this issue.  It seems like idolatry because of the passion and commitment.

I keep thinking about Paul words in Philippians about kneeling. “….at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (Phil 2:10).  Could it be that men are caring more about things that aren’t important, while being distracted from things that truly are important.  Bending the knee implies an allegiance to someone.  I ask myself; “Are you willing Al, to kneel publicly out of reverence and submission to the Lord Jesus.”  If so, it will influence my attitude as to how others view the flag and our national anthem.  My commitment to Jesus helps keep this controversy in perspective.  I can be more objective, respecting why others use Sunday afternoon for accusation and grievance

I  wonder if some of the fuss about taking the knee during the national anthem among Christian men, is evidence that we might be  wrapping the flag to tightly around the gospel message.  While I consider myself to be a patriotic guy, I have a deeper allegiance to the kingdom of God.  The symbol of the cross has much more significance for me then the flag.  With Paul I pray, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal. 6:13).

I also wonder if there isn’t an underlying, unspoken discontent with men in regards to the NFL.  When men are together enjoying the games, there is a kind of brotherhood that men long to experience.  The political correctness that has brought a  feminine perspective to the commentary of the game, seems like an invasion to many men.  Professional football is a male sport.  Women do not have the experience.  This is what Cam Newton meant when he said, “It’s funny to see a female talk about routes.”  He later had to apologize for this comment.

Again my contention is that if a man is secure and comfortable in his  masculine soul, he can navigate these “minefields” of controversy, without emotional attachment.  The invasion of the feminine is here to stay.  Political correctness is integral to our national dialogue. With “the mind of Christ” (Phil 2:16) we can find a solid place to stand and still be able to enjoy the NFL on Sunday afternoon.

At the funeral of Cardinal Meisner in  Germany, a short message was read from Pope Benedict, who had resigned a few years earlier.  It included this telling paragraph:  “We know that this passionate pastor and shepherd found it particularly difficult to leave his post, especially at a time in which the Church stands in particularly pressing need of convincing shepherds who can resist the dictatorship of the spirit of the age and who live and think the faith with determination … in this last period of his life, he learned to let go and to live out of a deep conviction that the Lord does not abandon his church, even when the boat has taken on so much water as to be on the verge of capsizing.”

This was not the first time Pope Benedict sounded an alarm regarding the health of the church.  Back in 2005, the then Cardinal Ratzinger spoke prophetically regarding the church in the West.  “… Relativism, that is, letting oneself be ‘tossed here and there, carried about by wind of doctrine,” seems the only attitude that can cope with modern times.”  “We are building a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one’s own ego and desires.”  Then later as Pope Benedict XVI he warned that the spiritual crisis the West faces is worse than anything since the fifth-century fall of the Roman Empire.

In 2010, as Benedict XVI, he  gave an address at Westminster Hall entitled “The Real Challenge for Democracy.”  He said: “If the moral principles underpinning the democratic process are themselves determined by nothing more solid than social consensus, the fragility of the process becomes all too evident.”  I personally believe the former Pope has courageously spoken as a prophet in an attempt to wake up the church in the West to the dangers it faces.

Christian Smith, a sociologist at Notre Dame, sees “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism” (MTD) displacing authentic Christianity among American Christians.  The highest goal of MTD is to be happy and feel good about oneself.  It is a religious practice that suits a self-centered, consumerist culture.  “America has lived a long time off its thin Christian veneer,” Smith observes.  “That is all finally being stripped away by the combination of mass consumer capitalism and liberal individualism.”

Men, my advice, as it has been throughout all my years as a pastor, is when we become  confused and uncertain in the midst of cultural storms, look to Jesus, cling to Jesus and cry out to Jesus for mercy.  Put yourself under the lordship of Jesus and rejoice that you are part of his everlasting kingdom being manifested in the earth.  Pray prayers of protection for yourself and your family.

Remember Paul’s words: “And so I insist – and God backs me up on this – that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God, but with reality itself.  They can’t think straight anymore.  Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion” (Eph. 4:17-19 – Message).

Take this warning to heart.  Be careful not to absorb the conflicting narrative of the dominant culture.  Separated from ultimate truth, it becomes “empty-headed,”  “mindless,” out of touch with reality, and unable to think straight.  Often the result is to become obsessed with sexuality and perversion.  Rather, cling to the Lord:  “Because he clings to me I will deliver him; because he knows my name I will set him on high” (Ps. 91:14 NABRE)

In this  blog I  am wading into some turbulent waters regarding human sexuality.  The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW)  released a new declaration,  reasserting the significance of biological sex and traditional marriage over society’s growing LGBT acceptance.   “The Nashville Statement”  has generated a  mixed reception from evangelical leaders.  The statement defends the importance of our creation as male and female, as it relates to issues regarding marriage, same-sex attraction, relations, and self-understanding, and transgender persons and transgenderism.   I encourage you to read the statement for yourself – Nashville Statement. org.

After some hesitation I want to express public approval of this statement.  The preamble states that our culture, “has embarked upon a massive revision of what it means to be a human being.”  Human identity as male and female is not longer seen as God’s plan, but rather, “an expression of an individual’s autonomous preferences.”  The question is asked, “Will the church…lose her biblical conviction, clarity, and courage, and blend into the spirit of the age…. .. Our true identity, as male and female persons, is given by God.  It is not only foolish, but hopeless, to try to make ourselves what God did not create us to be.”

Samuel D James expresses my sentiments when he observes, “The Nashville Statement is an attempt – an imperfect one! – at theological clarity.  It summarizes in direct language what these evangelicals believe about sex, marriage, and identity.  If it fails to speak accurately for every participant in this theological conversion, then we must acknowledge our own limitations and yearn for the day when we all shall know as we are known.”  Knowing it is difficult to deal with the complexities of transgenderism in a concise declaration,  the statement attempts to apply a “integrity lens” to the integrity of sex and gender as created by God.

This statement is a “line in the sand.”  Those who hold an orthodox faith have been too passive in the past regarding the sexual revolution and its effects upon our culture.  While  the content might seem too direct and uncompromising, it is a statement that is needed at this time in the life of bible believing Christians.  The president of CBMW observed the statement to be an “effort to produce a statement of evangelical unity on these matters that can serve as a reference point for the churches and Christian organizations that are looking for confessional language on these issues.”

My hope is that all the men who read this blog, will read the statement.  In my opinion it give biblical understanding to “the hyper-activity that is afflicting people on all sides of debates surrounding sex and sexuality.”  “We aren’t expressing some peculiar or eccentric claims of Christian theology,” noted Alastair Roberts, “but upholding creational realities that have been generally recognized across human ages.”

The Nashville statement is needed for clarification, when compared to a statement put out by a group calling itself “Christians United in Support of LGBT+ Inclusion in the Church.”  Their statement declares “A new day is dawning in the Church, and all Christians are being called to step out boldly and unapologetically in affirmation and celebration of our LGBT+ siblings as equal participants in the Kingdom of God.”  While the Nashville Statement might be too blunt, lacking pastoral empathy, its value, in my opinion, is in presenting a clear biblical expression of human sexuality.

Human sexuality and identify is not something we can agree to disagree on.  Paul exhorts  us in I Thess. 4:3-4 “Keep yourselves from sexual promiscuity.  Learn to appreciate and give dignity to your body, not abusing it, as is so common among those who know nothing of God.”

Included in this blog is an inspiring  prayer, adopted from Daniel 9:4-19,  written by Christina Walker, who is Associate Director of Academic Programs at the Billy Graham Center.  I belong to a small prayer group that meets at my church every Wed. morning.  I am highly motivated to drive into town each week because the others in attendance are intercessors like myself.

The words of the prophet Habakkuk  help shape  our prayers as we cry out to God for mercy. “I have heard about you, Lord.  I am filled with awe by your amazing works.  In this time of our deep need, help us again as you did in years gone by.  And in your anger remember your mercy” (Hab. 3:2).  We join Nehemiah as he prayed, “….let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel.  I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s house have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you” Neh 1:5-7).

Here is The Prayer.  “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong.  We have been wicked and have rebelled against the Gospel of Love; we have turned away from your commands to care for the least of these and to consider others’ needs before our own.  We have not listened to your servants, who spoke through scripture in your name to our leaders, and to all the people of the land.

Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame – the people of America.  We, and our leaders, are covered with shame, LORD, because we have sinned against you.  The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the law of love you gave us in Scripture.  Your Church  has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.

Therefore, we face the judgments written in your Word.  “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Matt. 7:1-2).  We know the judgment of God’s household will be first ( I Peter 4: 17), yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. The Lord will not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.

Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand, who raised Christ for the dead and conquered sin and death, and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong.  Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger.  Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made your church an object of scorn to all those around us.

Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant.  For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your church.  We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.  Lord, listen!  Lord, forgive!  Lord, hear and act!  For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your people bear your Name.”  ( Adaptation of Daniel 9:4-19)

Men, use the content of this prayer to help you wade through the turbulent times we live in, as you contempt the direction of our nation.

Hurricanes are devastating events. It is hard to comprehend the suffering the people endure -particularly in the aftermath of a Category 4 or 5 storm.  With tears in my eyes, I have observed brave people from all walks of life rescue thousands of people from dangerous flood waters.  In most of those cases, men have risked their lives on behalf of others. Yes, there have been brave women as well, but the majority have been men.  Following Hurricane Harvey in 2017, one of my favorite groups was ” the Cajun Navy.”  As one man said so matter-of-factly, “I’m gonna try to save some lives.”  I was deeply moved to hear the heartfelt gratitude of whole families rescued from rising floodwaters.

It takes a humanitarian crisis for a tone-deaf culture to realize how distorted the false narrative of extreme feminists has become.  It has gained prominence partly through the dominant media spreading the warped idea of toxic masculinity.  One woman tweeted in response to a 2017 photo-gone-viral of SWAT officer Daryl Hudeck rescuing a mother and her infant child: “It’s not that women aren’t brave. They are. But this is just what men do. Great, gloriously toxic men. Love them to death.”

What we have witnessed in so many of those dramatic pictures is the true chivalric nature of masculinity. These were ordinary men acting upon their innate sense of responsibility to be protectors.  They courageously responded in the face of real danger, helping to dispel the “toxic masculine” narrative. “Seemingly overnight,” wrote Mark Tapson, “our culture has unquestion-ably embraced the term “toxic masculinity.  Male nature itself is the problem, we are told, and the solution is the deconstruction of our understanding of what it means to be a man.”  But the photos and news reports coming out of the devastation wrought by hurricane after hurricane and natural disaster after natural disaster are putting to rest this skewed idea.

Men, when you feel intimidated by the persuasive voices of radical feminism, along with men who accept their narrative, remember the brave “toxic” men mounting heroic rescue efforts. Rise up with inner strength and courage – and allow your protective “juices” to flow. Do what honorable men have always done. Take responsibility for the care of your family and work for the good of those who are less fortunate in your community and in the world. Live out of your God-given masculine soul.

Remember Peter’s words: “In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives.  Treat your wife with understanding as you live together.  She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life.  Treat her as you should so our prayers will not be hindered” (I Peter 3:7 NLT).  A footnote in the NLT Study Bible states: “Peter was probably thinking of the woman’s physical strength and perhaps her social status.  Since women are typically physically weaker than men and were often less able to assert themselves in that society, husbands had the duty of protecting and caring for his wife.”

My bride is an equal partner, but she does not have the same physical strength I have. Even so, she is strong spiritually, continuing to spiritually challenge me with her consistent walk with the Lord.  God has called me to be her protector, both physically and spiritually.  I take seriously the warning of our prayers being hindered if I am not taking responsibility to protect her.  Men, stand up in the strength of the Lord and fight for your family, for others, and for the Kingdom of God.

We are into the NFL season.   I am pulling for the  Minnesota Vikings.  I have to admit that my bride and I get  “jacked up” over our team.  The Star Tribune recently had an article in which  Sam Bradford, our quarterback, talked about his faith.  The bar has been raised high for this coming season.  Our quarterback in under a lot of pressure.  He acknowledged that his faith helps him handle the stress. “A lot of it is my faith and knowing the Lord has a plan for me, and I put my trust in him.”

The sports writer, Brian Murphy observed, “Relinquishing oneself to a higher power is counter intuitive to a profession driven by control freaks, its simplicity almost too much for  data driven fans who define players by algorithms and fantasy rankings and wanting Bradford to deliver wins.”  Bradford talks of giving up control. “You give up control of your life to God and you allow Him to take control of your life.  We get in our own ways a lot of times, but by turning it over to Him and coming in here every day and focusing on what I can do to become a better quarterback….”

Now I have learned not to put too much stock in what professional athletics say about their faith.  However, I would like to take Bradford’s expression of faith at face value.  Yes, it takes  lot of faith to put our trust in God and get out of “the driver’s seat.”  The Message puts it straight forward in  Matt.  16:24-26, “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead.  You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am.  Don’t run from suffering, embrace it.  Follow me and I’ll show you how.  Self-help is no help at all.  Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to find yourself, your true self.”

Surrender is not a  popular concept with men.  It seems to implies failure or defeat, while for women surrender seems more like abuse or use of power.  For men surrendering  feels like a diminishment of our manhood.  We prefer autonomy and control, wanting to be in “the driver’s seat,” thinking self-control will bring  freedom, significance and respect.   Yet if we are honest there is much in life that is unpredictable  and out of our control.  Rather than facing the vulnerability and risks of life, we choose to be willful, living with resolve and self effort. For Christian men  will power and discipline can easily produce a religious self with  a “clinched fist.”  The result can be  rigid and prideful person, lacking authenticity, vitality and spontaneity. God save us from men with this kind of religious presence.

In the church this is expressed in the words of the Pharisee, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men…even like this tax collector (Luke 18:11).  But the tax collector prayed, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (13).  Jesus said of these two men, “This tax man, not the other, went home make right with God.  If you walk around with your nose in the air,  you’re going to end up flat on your face, but if you’re content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself” (Luke 18:14 – Message).

There are many men who do not know who they are in Christ, because they have built up a hard shell around their inner life, choking off the vitality of the Spirit, who brings forth our true self.    It is sad how often our “spiritual self improvement projects” really protect us from ourselves, while only reinforcing our false religious self. Remember it always, “letting go and letting God.”

This is another of those personal blogs from yours truly, brother Al.  Yesterday (Aug. 31st) was not a good day for me.  Using the analogy of a storm, I would say my day started out rather sunny and peaceful.  I was looking forward to being at my desk studying, praying and writing.  In the afternoon I would be out in the woods chopping wood.  I then would treat myself by watching the Golden Gophers play their first game against Buffalo.  But then came the storms.

These were two emotional storms that got the best of me.  The first storm involved my dear bride and I having an altercation, which I always dislike, because I  get  resentful and feel like a failure.  The second storm involved  the grader coming by, plowing our gravel road, resulting in dusting being stirred up by passing cars.  I was under the assumption that the grader would not grade in front of our place.  After the grader went by I got angry over the prospects of having to deal with dust. How trivial compared to Hurricane Harvey.  I had been broadsided by two storms.

I was not be the same for the rest of the day.  I was constantly reminded of Eph 4:27-28: “Go ahead and be angry.  You do well to be angry- but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge.  And don’t stay angry.  Don’t go to bed angry.  Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.”  Men, with all my heart I want to grow in Christlike character and in holiness.  But on the 31st I was broadsided by storms.  Sometimes l weather them in fine fashion, but on this occasion I failed miserably.

For what is’t worth, here are some learnings from your truly, who has navigated many emotional storms over the years, but is still needing grace and mercy for continual storms.   First, for the most part I have learned to admit to myself that I am angry.  I was able to process my anger in an open space of my soul, rather than deny the storm within.  David said, “Don’t sin by letting anger control you.  Think about it overnight and remain silent” (Ps 4:4).

Secondly, I knew from the beginning of the storm that I had to ask forgive from my wife and to forgive the country supervisor for his policy.  Forgiving the supervisor took some doing.  I worked in the woods all afternoon, clewing on my resentment for his decision.  By the end of the day, I was able to let the man go. I am learning that the Lord is “a refuge from the storm.”   Holding on to resentment would only cause the storm to linger longer, settling as a cancer in my soul.  Today (1st) I am ready to ask my wife for forgiveness.  If I don’t it would erect a barrier between us.

Thirdly, it takes time. This is not easy for me to admit.  I thought I was strong enough spiritual to weather storms.  I was wrong.  I have a long ways to go.  It takes time for God to form the soul, and it takes time to get over emotional storms

Fourthly, the distaste for these storms. I don’t like what I feel and experience during these storms, especially when I know they are of my own making.  It makes me what to “grow up” in the Lord

Fifthly,  the storm has mostly  passing in my heart and soul.  I thank God that I can make confess of my unspiritual behavior due to this self-inducted storm.  I pray I will  be more mature and vigilant for the next emotional storm that will surely come.

Here is a quote from New Testament scholar, N. T. Wright on transgenderism.  “The confusion about gender identity is a modern, and now internet-fuelled, form of the ancient philosophy of Gnosticism.  The Gnostic, one who ‘knows’, has discovered the secret of ‘who I really am’, behind the deceptive outward appearance (in Rifkind’s apt phase, the ‘ungainly, boring, fleshy one”).  This involves denying the goodness, or even the ultimate reality, of the natural world.  Nature, however, tends to strike back, with the likely victims in this case being vulnerable and impressionable youngsters who, as confused adults, will pay the price for their elders’ fashionable fantasies.”

When I first read this I immediately thought of fathers and their children.  The cry of my heart for fathers is not give into the cultural hysteria regarding acceptance of transgender movement.  Sons and daughters are a precious gift given to father by a loving heavenly Father.  “Children are a gift from the Lord, they are a reward from him.  Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior’s quiver.  How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them” (Ps 127:3-4).  When our kids were growing up, my wife and I would refer to them as “prescription babies.”  In those days a popular phrase among Christian parents was, “God doesn’t make any junk.”

Men, it is vital for you to model, by your disposition, a heavenly Father who has given  you specially chosen children to be  in your quiver.  They are your most important stewardship.  God’s intention is for you to shape their lives so they might live in the freedom and liberty of their God given gender.  You and your wife model for your children how God intends man and woman are to live on this earth. So in my humble opinion, it is extremely vital that you as a father live freely, comfortably and without apology in your God give masculine soul. You symbolize masculinity.  Your children will absorb a sense of the masculine from you.

Granted this is not an easy task in our day.  But if your sons and daughter are to weather the chaos of the gender wars, you can have a vital impact on their lives by simply modeling a Dad who is affirmed in his masculine soul, while honoring his wife as his feminine compliment.  Judy and I made it clear to our three children that our love for one another came before our love for our children.  So how I treated the mother of my children was vital.  They know they were the result of our union in marriage.  They in turn were our most precious gifts from God.  As parents, we visualized how God had perfectly arranged the order of our family with three children male, female and male in just the right order.

Do not underestimate the symbolism of your role as Father in family life.  Leading family devotions  at the family meal is a good example.  We read in Exodus 23:25-6, “Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water.  I will take away sickness from among you….and I will give you a full life span.”  Leanne Payne uses this passage to point out the following, “The modern fast track we are on has nearly eliminated ceremony and ritual at table.  Think, if you will, of the ceremony or ritual of the blessing that brings down the transcendent, hallowing the ordinary, at table.” Use meal time to express the masculine voice speaking into souls of your children.

Men, we are coming into turbulent waters in the coming days due to the “alt-right” and “alt-left” movements in our country, venting their deep anger concerning the direction of our nation.  I plead with you not to be influenced by the inflamed rhetoric, both by the participants and the media’s coverage.  We read in Isaiah 8:12 -13, “Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it.  The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you to dread.”  Another translation says, “People are saying that others make plans against them, but you should not believe them.”

The footnote in the NIV states that verses 11-13 express two different understandings of history: “1 ) Give God the central place that only the Holy One must have, or 2) Explain historical events as the result of human conspiracy, with the constant dread of the unknown that this view engenders.”  As Jesus talks about the end of the age in Mark 13, he exhorts us  to “watch out,” “being on guard,” or be “alert” seven times.  Don’t allow conspiracy talk shape your worldview.  Here are a few suggestions to help keep you vigilant.

First and foremost, keep your focus on Jesus as Lord.  Remember that one day, “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10-11).  Focusing means that you practice the presence of Jesus. Ps. 27:3 says it best. “My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’  Your face, Lord, I will seek.”   Revelations 22:13 reminds us, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”  Jesus is Lord of history, period.  So be mindful of Jesus as you maneuver through the minefields of  conspiracy discussions.

Secondly,  submit to the reign of Jesus’ kingdom in the earth. “For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself.  He made peace with everything in heaven and earth by mean of Christ’s blood on the cross” (Col. 1: 19-20). The alternative is the kingdom of darkness.  You will be influenced by one or the other.

Thirdly, live in repentance and humility.  Be warned – as a follower of Jesus in his kingdom reign, you will be hated.  Matthew, Mark and Luke in describing the end times, all warn about being hated.  “All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved” (Mark 13:13). Purpose to live humbly as a servant of Jesus, punctuated by a readiness to repent of your failures. ‘Stay alert. This is hazardous work I’m assigning you.  You’re going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don’t call attention to yourselves.  Be cunning as a snake, inoffensive as a dove” Matt. 10:16 – Message).

Fourthly, cry out for God to have mercy.  The coming relational chaos, in my opinion, is a sign of God’s judgment.  Jesus warned this would happen. “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people” (Matt. 24:10).  As a result there will be “the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold” (Matt 24:12).  That is a description of broken relationships.  In the midst of such confusion, we should be crying out for God to have mercy.  Habakkuk prayed, “in wrath remember mercy” (Hab. 3:2)

Church historian Robert Louis Wilken has made this  pertinent observation regarding  the church in America.  “Nothing is more needful today than the survival of Christian culture, because in recent generations this culture has become dangerously thin.  At this moment in the church’s history in this country it is less urgent to convince the alternative culture in which we live of the truth of Christ than it is for the Church to tell itself its own story and to nurture its own life, the culture of the city of God, the Christian republic.  This is not going to happen without a rebirth of moral and spiritual discipline and a resolute effort on the part of Christians to comprehend and to defend the remnants of Christian culture.”

The more I  study the prophets, and observe what is happening in our culture, I sense  we have not  lost the cultural war.  What is at stake is the survival of Christian culture.  I agree with Rod Dreher, when he writes in his book, “The Benedict Option” that we need to build alternate communities, allowing  for Christian formation of a new kind of Christian, who will become a different kind of citizen.  “The Benedict Option…begins with recognition that Western society is post-Christian and that absent a miracle, there is no hope of reversing this condition in the foreseeable future…..trying to reclaim a lost influence will be a waste of energy and time…”  We need Christian communities to “establish or reestablish common practices and common institutions that can reverse the isolation and fragmentation of contemporary society.”

Dreher warns us, “……Christianity is no longer at the center of our cultural definition and self-understanding, and its hold on the collective imagination is waning.”  In addition, “there are no social forces now present capable of stopping the cultural momentum toward full secularization…..it is more important for us to build up the internal resilience within our families, churches and institutions, that will allow us to endure post-Christian America with faith intact. ”  Could Dreher be right in saying, “The lack of awareness of our predicament and its nature is the chief obstacle among Christians to preparing for it.  Many Christians cannot fathom the magnitude of the change now upon us.”

I have followed Dreher for some time.  He might sound alarmist to some.  But I believe he is like a watchman on the walls, warning us of what is coming.  As Grandparents, Judy and I, pray constantly and fervently for our eight grandchildren and their families.  Passing on a strong Christian culture, that models godly living among men and women is going to be more difficult. Men, I want you to know that you have a friend, mentor and encourager in your calling to follow Jesus in our day, along with your responsibility of raising your children.

So what is a wild man to do?  Here are five suggestions.  First, place yourself under the Lordship of Jesus and the reign of his kingdom.  Jesus taught us prayer that his kingdom would come and his will would be done on earth as it is in heaven.  I pray that daily.  2) Humbly accept that mantle of high priest in your family.  Thirdly, for the sake of our family evaluate your commitment to the body of Christ. You need others to help model a healthy Christian culture.  Fourthly, find a group of husbands and fathers who are committed to the kingdom presence in your community.  Fifthly, always remember the promise of Romans 5:20, “But where sin increased, grace increased all the more.”  Continually cry out for God to be merciful to you and your family.