๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐น๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ด๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ถ๐โ๐ ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ผ๐๐
In the United States, we enjoy incredible blessings, some that would seem like science fiction just a few generations ago. My car can literally drive me to church, the grocery store, or anywhere I need to go. We also enjoy freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and technology that makes life more convenient than ever.
And yet, in this modern world, religion is declining, faster than at any other time in history. I know many good, kind, generous people who live wholesome lives, but they have no interest in Jesus Christ. In fact, some seem to carry a sense of superiority when it comes to the idea of worship, especially organized worship of Jesus Christ.
What I find so fascinating, and troubling, about this trend is that the very freedoms we now enjoy in the West were built on the foundation of religious devotion, particularly the organized worship of Jesus Christ. The principles of individual rights, self-government, and human dignity didnโt just emerge from nowhere, they were cultivated over centuries by faithful believers, grounded in Christian values.
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Widespread church attendance didnโt begin to decline until the 1960s. In many ways, our society is still coasting on the momentum of millennia of devotion, sacrifice, and righteousness. And yet the world seems to have forgotten. Itโs astounding how short our cultural memory can be.
The truth is, much of what we consider โgoodโ in life, our moral frameworks, our legal systems, our respect for human life and liberty, exists because generations of people faithfully gathered to worship God, taught their children to follow Christ, and built their communities around those values.
The Reformation Era, in the 1500s, brought about religious reform and a greater understanding of Jesus Christโs mission, it was a movement to understand Him and His teachings more deeply. Ironically, we seem to be moving in the opposite direction today: not toward greater light and understanding, but away from it. A kind of โde-reformationโ.
Oddly enough, this decline doesnโt weaken my testimony, it strengthens it. The more I realize how much of our modern world was built by churchgoing, Christ-centered families, the more convinced I am that staying on that path is right for me and my family. When I go to church with my wife and children, Iโm not just practicing tradition, Iโm carrying forward a legacy of light and truth.
Our currency still says In God We Trust. Society may be turning away from that trust, but I find peace and strength in choosing to uphold it. My testimony is built not only on faith, but on the fruits of those who came before me, and that foundation is what I now try to build in my own home.
