Do you ever feel like you’re just drifting along and when you finally speak up about what you see happening in the world those around you tell you to stop overreacting, or to be more tolerant? If so, I want you to know that you are not alone.
I’ve been feeling this way for sometime and it’s maddening. It’s the reason that I’ve greatly reduced my Facebook activity; I’m just tired of arguing with people who used to be really good friends about whether selling aborted baby parts is okay or not. I’m tired of being told that I just need to calm down and stop reading the news when I get upset about the genocide of Christians and others in Iraq and Syria, or about the organized sex slave trade established by ISIS, or when I point out that it’s not okay to take 11 and 12 year old kids on a field trip to a porn shop for their sex ed class. It’s maddening to have to argue these, seemingly, obvious truths but what’s more maddening is the sense of being too small to make a difference.
When I was 21 I used to talk about wanting to change the world. There was so much to do, so many problems that needed to be corrected, and I wanted to be a part of making those things better. I wanted to help fulfill Isaiah 61 and bring good news to the poor, to help those who were hurting, to proclaim liberty to the captives,etc. But as those with more life experience had warned me, I became jaded. I was dejected and frustrated by my inability to do anything. Sure, I would talk about the problems to spread information to those who didn’t know what was going on, but I had this feeling of helplessness.
A few weeks back I was reading the news when I realized that something had to give. The headlines were full of stories about war, famine, death, terrorism, and all of the wickedness that the US pop culture has to offer. But another headline caught my eye. It read #NeverAgainIsNow. It was an announcement from conservative/libertarian commentator Glenn Beck of an event being planned for 8/28-8/29 in Birmingham, Alabama (USA).
The Purpose:
To boldly stand, speak, and act as one for self-evident truths.
The Mission:
- Seek and support those things that are true, uplifting and unifying
- Stand without fear for the right of conscience by renewing ourselves
- Declare that all lives matter and political correctness is destroying truth
- Bridge the gap as we serve and comfort others in non-violence
- Unite despite all attempts of the world to divide us along lines of race, political and religious affiliation, or sexual orientation.
Speaking for truth, standing for the right of conscience, declaring the value of all human life, fighting for unity through biblical love and non-violence; this is where my heart is. Even before reading over the mission and purpose I felt the Holy Spirit urging me to go to Birmingham and to be a part of what the Lord is starting there.
I strongly believe that we are entering a time in our history when God will weed out the true believers from the make-believers. It’s getting hard to be a faithful Christian in our society and it’s only going to get worse from here. But the question is: Are we going too give way to a culture that does not love Jesus or believe the Bible, or are we going to stand our ground? I believe many will fall away, but some will stand firm. We are the 300 Spartans making our stand at Thermopylae as the Persian hordes approach. We are the Americans besieged by the Nazi army at Bastogne.
I will be in Birmingham next weekend, 8/28 and 8/29, and I invite you to join me. Tickets for the event on Saturday are $12 (USD) and there is a free march that morning, following in the footsteps of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
God is gathering the Remnant of His Church. As the darkness grows, the Light shines brighter…
But Dan, isn’t Glenn Beck a Mormon?
I know this question will come to at least one person’s mind, so let me answer it. Yes, he says that he is Mormon. To answer the next question: no, I don’t believe Mormon’s are a denomination of Christianity.
That being said, I’ve had a fair number of interactions with Mormons. I disagree on many levels with the Church of Latter Day Saints, and I do think that the LDS church is a cult. However, Jesus is big enough to capture the hearts of individuals within other faiths, Mormons, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, etc. I’ve listened extensively to the Glenn Beck Program and from what I have heard, Beck is a Christian. I’ve never heard him reference the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, or Pearl of Great Price but he speaks of the Old and New Testaments extensively. Furthermore, he understands the person of Jesus as a member of the Trinity. He proclaims the trinity, which I have never heard any Mormon do. I told my wife not long ago when considering his identity as a Mormon that he doesn’t sound like any Mormon I have met and in fact he sounds more like a Christian that many Christians I know.
All that being said, I don’t really care or think it matters if he identifies himself as a Mormon. The point is, that we are standing up against the evil in this world, to make a difference, and to do the right thing even if nothing changes.
Ancient Abandon 