The American Crisis
America is in the midst of a crisis that began decades ago. What we are witnessing unfold over the course of 2020 and now into 2021 started with a generation of current leaders trained in methods and philosophies that contradict every part of God’s Word. Allow me to pause for a moment...this new series of blogs is not going to be based on political opinion. I want to be very clear about that. This series will be grounded in God’s Word and how the history of educating leaders—and now our children—has significantly impacted the current crisis that America finds herself in.
It might be important for us to first define what the crisis is. Anyone can turn on the daily or nightly news and see that the very way of life and thinking in America is under attack. It occurred to me as I wrote those words that 20 years ago, I would have only mentioned the nightly news. That alone reflects a significant shift in America. Today, "news" or "information" moves at a rate faster than we can keep up with. We live in a world where information is power, and whoever can release it first often appears to be the most powerful. However, the American crisis is not centered around news. It is not centered on information or knowledge. The American crisis is centered around worldview.
I believe it is vital in this opening blog to define two terms:
- Worldview: How one views and functions within the world around them. Your worldview determines your values, your values determine your actions, and your actions determine your consequences.
- Truth: Notice in this definition, the "T" is capitalized. When you see the "T" capitalized, it means it is directly connected to the Word.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
I believe that how you define truth shapes your worldview. Truth has been under attack. Rather than focusing on the truth of God’s Word, culture has redefined truth to fit their own needs.
“He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners.” Isaiah 61:2
“He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives.” Luke 4:18
“If you continue in my Word then you are truly disciples of Mine and you will know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32
From Genesis 3 until Christ returns, mankind has been—and will always be—engaged in a cosmic battle. In this battle, man must choose between God’s truth claims and Satan’s lies. The changes in education have been subtle. At first, you don’t notice them, but then one day you wake up and realize that the world has become what it is today. The American crisis cannot be solved overnight, but it can be solved. We must first understand how this shift has crept into the very fabric of our lives, particularly in our education system. We need to recognize how, as Christians, we have turned a blind eye to what is really happening in classrooms across America. You may ask, "What about the rest of the world?" This drift has certainly occurred elsewhere, but we are called to address our own problems before we attempt to solve those of others. Our focus must be on the system to which we have entrusted our children daily.
The battle is fought on the education turf.
Ken Ham & Greg Hall
Already Compromised
Hitler believed that he who controls the youth controls the future. The values children had derived from their parents needed to be replaced with new values taught in the classroom. Hitler was so direct in his approach that he made this formally known:
Adolf Hitler
This mindset has gradually become the focus of many in American colleges and universities.
Dr. Richard Rorty, University of Virginia
The American crisis did not occur overnight. Kingdom Education Ministries and Dr. Glen Schultz describe the shift in the following manner, by decade:
In the 1950s, kids lost their INNOCENCE
They were liberated from their parents by well-paying jobs, cars, and lyrics in music that gave rise to a new term: the generation gap.
In the 1960s, kids lost their AUTHORITY
It was the decade of protest—church, state, and parents were all called into question and found wanting. Their authority was rejected, yet nothing ever replaced it.
In the 1970s, kids lost their LOVE
It was the decade of me-ism, dominated by hyphenated words beginning with "self": self-image, self-esteem, self-assertion. It made for a lonely world. Kids learned everything there was to know about sex but forgot everything there was to know about love, and no one had the nerve to tell them there was a difference.
In the 1980s, kids lost their HOPE
Stripped of innocence, authority, and love, and plagued by the horror of a nuclear nightmare, large numbers of this generation stopped believing in the future.
In the 1990s, kids lost the MEANING OF TRUTH
It was the decade when national leaders redefined truth as merely what is legally accurate. Public opinion polls defined moral truth, while the church sat by quietly and watched.
In the 2000s, kids lost their FAITH
Having lost the meaning of truth and facing growing terror threats, this generation lost their faith in the truth of God’s Word and found their lives driven by fear.
In the 2010s, kids are in danger of losing their FUTURE
Driven by fear rather than faith, a growing number of this generation is frantically chasing the false promises of the American Dream. They are living only for the temporal and are thus chasing after treasures on earth, only to find them decaying before their very eyes. They are finding life full of despair and quickly losing any sense of eternity.
This is the American crisis
Mr. Euler has over 20 years of experience working in Christian Schools, 13 as a Head of School and is currently the Head of School at Word of God Academy, Shreveport, LA., a ministry of Word of God Ministries.
Website www.wogacademy.org
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