Strange Life

Earlier this week I watched a movie based upon a true story. The setting was Los Angeles and it's surrounding areas in the late 1920's. The main character was a woman who's husband had deserted her, leaving her to raise her son alone.

I'm a stickler for details when it comes to an accurate portrayal of a different time period. In this particular film every detail had been worked out nearly perfect. One fact that stuck out clearly in my mind was how trusting and honest people were. Though they lived alone the woman never locked her door when leaving for work, or at night when going to bed. Most people wouldn't think of doing that in our time.

The other characters in the movie were also very honest people. They mentioned God, spoke of praying, and occasionally quoted something from the bible. Although not a Christian film, it's the way the majority of the people were back in those days. Yes, the movie as a whole portrayed things very well.

Our society has changed quite a bit from the 1920's. People don't dwell upon God or pray like they did back then. The evidence is clearly visible all around us by the way we have declining morals, crime, drug problems, teen pregnancies, an astounding divorce rate, abortion, and far too many other issues to list.

Back then, nonbelievers were the strange ones. I can even remember in my own childhood, which began decades later, how oddly a person would be thought of if they didn't attend church on Sunday.

Today it's the Christians who appear strange to the rest of society. We live in a time where God just gets in the way. Where many don't have time for church, the bible or prayer. Today we as a society are paying the price for omitting God from our lives.

What comes across to me as the strangest of all is that people can see the problems, but can't see the obvious solution to the problems. In the old days God was deeply rooted in our society. The result among other things was a safer, more pleasant, and more trusting environment to live in.

Even Christians do not seem to have the same depth of seriousness they once had. Back then they craved the Word of God, they looked for every opportunity to go to church. They didn't need programs, entertainment, or all the other frills that seem to be a standard in many churches of our time. They went to church for fellowship and to be fed from God's Holy Word.

Will we ever see a return to the trusting times once enjoyed in our country? Not unless we, the church, snap back to our senses.

What do we really have to offer this troubled society we live in? Are we truly setting the standard we should be setting? Are our programs and entertainment producing enough new converts to Christianity to be worth the expense and effort we put into them?

OK, so call ME strange for thinking the way I do. That's alright with me. But before you too quickly judge me take some time to think about the things I've mentioned.

No, I'm not a legalist, a bible thumper, a fire and brimstone type of believer. I am only one of the few who yearn for a return to godliness in our society, and a sincerity in our churches.

I know there are others out there, just like me. Could you possibly be one of those few?