Preface: Ichabod....the glory had long since departed by then. I heard the following anecdote in a David Wilkerson sermon....three decades ago. He decided to attend a music concert by the most popular Christian singer at the time. Popularity had changed the singer. On my dining room wall....about twenty feet from where I sit....is a vinyl 33 rpm album....from that singer....long story short....I decided to pick the Christian album that meant the most to me at the beginning of my Christian walk....frame it like a rock star might frame a gold record....and hang it on our wall that is dedicated to personal experiences. In the past thirty-five years I have had no interest in what this singer puts out. So back to David Wilkerson....a member of the band was dancing with a rose in his mouth. I can attest to that....as I attended the same concert....in a different venue....but the same guitarist dancing with a rose in his mouth. Wilkerson said that he could see demons on the stage....and ran up the aisle yelling....Ichabod....Ichabod! May it be that some pastors tomorrow....in their own way....proclaim from their pulpits....Ichabod! The following post is from October of 2017:
By God's grace I never experienced it....but many parents have....a child....a son in this instance....he chooses the wrong friends....they're troublemakers. At an age when he should be learning not only his studies....but learning how to think....he wastes all of his time. He ignores all the warnings....his life falls apart....his future in dire jeopardy. He becomes an angry young man....angry at the world he does not understand....angry at his parents who point him to areas that he will never go. He breaks the law and goes to jail....or worse....he causes the death of someone. The parents ask God why....he was such a good young boy....with a smile that captivated everyone. What mistakes did they make? Would God have mercy on him after all the pain that he caused? The parents plead mercy for themselves....for failing....for not seeing the problem early enough....for their lives are destroyed also.
This is America.....and we are the parents. I'm not speaking of today's youth. I'm speaking rather of America and the metaphor of a troubled young man who will not listen to anyone with authority.....who will not pay attention to their studies....who will not give up the friends who always get them into trouble. Will God have mercy on America....will He have mercy on us?
We are violent....and we are hedonistic....we hate God....we drink in the entertainments until we vomit.....we don't honor our forefathers......we don't honor the home that they gave us......we don't appreciate the many sacrifices made so that we can play the fool and laugh at those who admonish us.....and we strike out in total ignorance at those who try to stop....to even attempt to make sense of the chaos.
There is no happy ending.....there is no making America great again. Whether we are fighting in the streets....or worrying at home....we brought all this pain and sorrow and confusion.....upon ourselves. Like Eli....we did not restrain our younger generations.....and as with Eli....our heritage is gone.....the glory has indeed departed from America..
