WHAT HAPPENED TO INNOCENCE?

I HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT VALUES AND OUR CHILDREN. EVERYONE OF US WOULD SHIELD OUR CHILDREN NOW, BUT WE CANNOT.—-WHY? WE ARE AFRAID IF WE DO NOT TEACH THEM ALL ABOUT LIFE, NOW, THEY WILL LEARN IT SOME OTHER WAY. AND THIS IS TRUE.

MEDIA, SCHOOLS, FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, AND OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS: ALL INFLUENCE OUR CHILDREN. I”M SURE YOU ALREADY KNOW THAT; BUT ARE WE GOING TO SIT BACK AND SEE THIS CONTINUE TO HAPPEN?

MY MOTHER AND I WERE HAVING A MOTHER-DAUGHTER DAY YESTERDAY, AND AS-YOU-WILL, WE BAGAN TO TALK ABOUT FAMILY.

WE WENT HERE AND THERE, AND THEN MOTHER BEGAN TO TELL ME ABOUT THE BIRTH OF HER BROTHER AND SISTER WHO ARE TWINS.

I WAS AMAZED TO HEAR THE STORY.

SHE SAID, “IN MY DAYS, AS A CHILD, WHEN A BABY WAS COMING, THE OTHER CHILDREN IN THE HOME DIDN’T EVEN KNOW THEY WERE GETTING TO HAVE ANOTHER BROTHER OR SISTER.

THE PREGNANT MOM WOULD HIDE THE BABY CLOTHES AT A NEIGHBOR’S HOUSE, SO THEY WOULDN’T KNOW.”

I STARTED ASKING MOTHER, “WHY?”

THEN I REALIZED THE ANSWER—-THEY WANTED THE CHILDREN TO EXPERIENCE CHILDHOOD IN INNOCENCE, UNTIL THEY WERE OLD ENOUGH TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT SEX.

THE PARENTS WOULD NOT LIE TO THEM, SO THEY JUST KEPT QUIET ABOUT IT.

ANYWAY, GRANDMOTHER WAS ABOUT TO GIVE BIRTH, SO HER NEIGHBOR TOOK ALL THE CHILDREN HOME WITH HER, AND SNUCK BACK WITH THE BABY CLOTHES AND BLANKET.

THEN IT HAPPENED! OUT COME MILDRED!!

MOTHER SAID, “IN THOSE DAYS THERE WAS NO WAY TO KNOW IF YOU WERE GOING TO HAVE A BOY OR GIRL, OR EVEN IF YOU WERE EXPECTING MORE THAN ONE.”

I GUESSED THAT WAS WHY THEY PUT DRESSES ON BOYS AS WELL AS GIRLS; I DON’T  KNOW.

THERE WERE MANY GUESSES, TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION, WHETHER THE MOTHER WAS BIGGER IN FRONT, OR BIGGER FROM THE BACK VIEW. NO ONE KNEW FOR SURE BUT GOD HIMSELF.

MOTHER CONTINUED, “AS SOON AS THEY GOT MILFORD CLEANED-UP, WRAPPED-UP—-TO THEIR SURPRISE, OUT CAME MILFORD! TWINS!!

THERE WERE NO CLOTHES FOR MILFORD, SO GRANDMA’S NEIGHBOR HAD TO RUN QUICKLY BACK HOME TO GET A BLANKET.”

I LOVE THIS STORY. THIS WAS A STORY I NEVER HEARD BEFORE.

I ENJOYED IT, BUT IT GOT ME TO THINKING.

WHAT HAPPENED?

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE INNOCENCE OF OUR SMALL CHILDREN?

WHY HAVE WE ALLOWED FAMILY VALUES TO BECOME SO POLLUTED?

WHERE DID WE GO WRONG?

MANY OF OUR SMALL CHILDREN KNOW MORE THAN I DID WHEN I GOT MARRIED.

THERE SHOULD BE A TIME OF INNOCENCE—-UNDISTURBED.

I KNOW YOU ARE ASKING,”HOW CAN WE KEEP OUR CHILDREN FROM GETTING ABUSED IF THEY DON’T KNOW?”

I BELIEVE THE TIME TO TELL THEM SOMETHING IS WHEN THEY BEGIN TO ASK QUESTIONS. BUT YOU DON’T HAVE TO TELL THEM EVERYTHING: JUST ENOUGH TO SATISFY THEM.

LEAVE OFF THE “CABBAGE PATCH,” AND THE “STORK STORY,” AND TELL THEM THE TRUTH: JUST ENOUGH TO SATISFY THEIR CURIOSITY, BECAUSE TOO MUCH WILL ONLY CONFUSE THEM, AND CAUSE THEM TO ASK MORE QUESTIONS.

MEN AND WOMEN OF GOD, IF WE DON’T DO SOMETHING, THIS SPIRAL WILL CONTINUE DOWN HILL.

THE WORLD, AND EVEN SOME PSYCOLOGISTS, WOULD TELL YOU IT IS GOOD FOR CHILDREN TO EXPERIENCE SEX EARLY. THEY SAY IT WILL PREPARE THEM FOR ADULTHOOD.

THIS IS A LIE FROM SATAN.

I KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE, WHAT IT CAN DO TO AN INNOCENT CHILD TO BE VIOLATED AT AN EARLY AGE.—-IT CAUSES THEM TO FEEL INFERIOR, AND MANY END UP IN MENTAL INSTITUTIONS; OR THROUGH UNCONTROLLED ANGER, EVEN A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY. SOME END UP IN HOMOSEXUALITY.

THEY ARE NOT PREPARED FOR SUCH AN ADULT ACTION.

YOU MIGHT THINK MY GRANDMOTHER MORTON WAS TOO PRIMITIVE!

WELL, AT LEAST MY GRANDMOTHER AND GRANDFATHER WERE DOING SOMETHING!!—-THEY WERE TRYING TO KEEP THOSE LITTLE ONE’S INNOCENT, UTIL THEY ERE READY TO EXPERIENCE LIFE.

YOU CAN CALL IT TOO PROTECTIVE IF YOU WANT, BUT WHAT IS GOING ON NOW IS FAR OUT OF HAND.

OUR TEENS, ON THE AVERAGE, ARE EXPERIENCING ACTIVE SEX LIVES. WHEN THEY MARRY, MANY OF THEM WON’T EVEN REMEMBER HOW MANY PARTNERS THEY HAVE HAD SEX WITH ALREADY.

CHILDREN SEE SO MANY ADULT PROGRAMS, THEY WANT TO BE AN ADULT TOO FAST: TOO FAST FOR THEIR MINDS AND BODIES.

CHILDREN ARE DATING CHILDREN. WHEN PUBERTY BEGINS, NUMEROUS CHILDREN HAVE ALREADY SEEN MANY SEX SCENES ON TV AND INTERNET WITH NO FILTERING. 

THEY ACT OUT WHAT THEY SEE, NOT WHAT THEY ARE TOLD.

ALONG WITH SOME OTHER MINISTERS, I HELPED MINISTER DELIVERENCE TO A THREE YEAR OLD CHILD. HER STORY GOES LIKE THIS: SHE HAD VIEWED HER MOTHER AND MEN IN BED, AND SHE WAS TRYING TO HAVE SEX WITH HER DOLL REPEATEDLY.  THE GRANDMOTHER BEGAN TO NOTICE WHAT SHE WAS DOING, AND BROUGHT HER FOR HELP.—-SHE RECEIVED DELIVERANCE.

I HAD A SUSPICION, ALSO, SHE MAY HAVE BEEN MOLESTED.

I AM HORRIFIED, THAT WE AS ADULTS, HAVE ALLOWED THINGS TO GET SO FAR OUT OF HAND.

YOU MIGHT SAY, “I AGREE, BUT WHAT CAN I DO?”

WE NEED TO PRAY, AND ASK GOD FOR A PLAN. HE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN CHANGE THE DIRECTION OF THIS DOWNWARD SPIRAL. WE NEED TO WATCH WHAT WE BRING INTO OUR HOMES. 

WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE EXAMPLE WE SET.

WE NEED TO STOP LETTING OUR CHILDREN START DATING BEFORE THEY ARE READY. 

WE NEED TO STOP RIDING OUR CHILDREN AROUND WITH THEIR DATES, BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT OLD ENOUGH TO DRIVE.

BELOVED, IF THEY ARE NOT OLD ENOUGH TO DRIVE, THEY ARE NOT MATURE ENOUGH TO DATE. SOMETIMES, I THINK PARENTS PUSH THEIR CHILDREN INTO DATING. 

YOUR CHILD IS NOT READY FOR WHAT THEY MIGHT EXPERIENCE. 

PEOPLE YOU TRUST MAY NOT PEOPLE YOU CAN TRUST.

WE NEED TO BEGIN AGAIN, AND TAKE CHECK ON OUR VALUES.

PROVERBS 7:7,8 – AND BEHOLD AMONG THE SIMPLE ONE’S, I DESCERNED AMONG THE YOUTHS, A YOUNG MAN VOID OF UNDERSTANDING, PASSING THROUGH THE STREET NEAR HER CORNER, AND HE WENT THE WAY OF HER HOUSE…

THIS IS DESCRIBING A YOUTH, NOT A MAN.—-SHE GOES ON TO TELL HIM THE MAN OF THE HOUSE IS GONE ON A TRIP AND NO ONE IS HOME. 

VERSES 21,22,27 – WITH HER MUCH FAIR SPEECH SHE CAUSED HIM TO YEILD, WITH THE FLATTERING OF HER LIPS SHE FORCED HIM. HE GOETH AFTER HER STRAIGHTWAY, AS AN OX GOETH TO A SLAUGHTER, OR AS A FOOL TO THE CORRECTION OF THE STOCKS; HER HOUSE IS THE WAY TO HELL, GOING DOWN TO THE CHAMBERS OF DEATH. (OR IF YOU WANT TO FIND THE ROAD TO HELL, LOOK FOR HER HOUSE.)

CHAPTER 2:17 – WHICH FORSAKETH THE GUIDE OF HER YOUTH, AND FORGETTETH THE COVENANT OF HER GOD.

SHE HAS FORSAKEN WHAT SHE WAS TAUGHT BY HER PARENTS, AND BECAME ARROGANT, AND TURNED HER BACK ON GOD. 

I THANK GOD FOR CHRISTIAN VALUES, MY PARENTS INSTILLED IN ME AS A SMALL CHILD. THEY TOOK ME TO CHURCH. THEY TAUGHT ME TO PRAY AND READ THE BIBLE EVERYDY. I LEARNED THAT AT HOME.

MANY WANT THEIR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN TO HAVE GOD AND HIS PEACE REST UPON THEM, BUT WE DON’T TO PAY THE PRICE OF DISCIPLINE.

TIS IS NOT TO BRING YOU TO CONDEMNATION, BUT TO SOUND AN ALARM.

PROVERBS SUMS IT UP THIS WAY (22:6)  WHEN I WAS A CHILD, I SPAKE AS A CHILD, I UNDERSTOOD AS A CHILD…

A CHILD UNDERSTANDS AS A CHILD AND SHOULD BE PROTECTED: DON’T FORCE THEM INTO ADULTHOOD.

THERE IS NO CHILD-CARE LIKE THE CARE OF A LOVING GODLY MOTHER AND FATHER (OR FATHER).

THE GREATEST ANSWER IS PRAYER: PRAY FOR ALL OUR CHILDREN.

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MOVER AND SHAKERS

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

My husband has a name for those who get things done. He calls them “Movers and Shakers.” These are people who know what they have to do, and do it. Many are still waiting for lightening to strike, to get them going. I see those who wait for somebody to tell them what to do.
On the other hand, there are those who are always busy. These are the one’s you know you can depend on when the going gets rough.
These are the one’s, that can do just a little bit more when asked.
If you want somebody to do something, ask someone who is already doing something

Keep in mind, I am not criticizing those who move slow; it happens to be my nature too. A slow mover can move slow, but not be slow to move. This kind of mover can still be going at the end of the day, when the fast mover has run out of steam. We all know, though, some are just lazy. These are the one’s, who watch while someone else is doing it.

I never liked watching, I always wanted to get my hands into it.
Are you like that? Sometimes, people see this as taking over, but at least were doing something. The other evening, I was listening to a train horn blow near my home, I said to the Lord, “That train sounds so lonely.” The Lord answered me this way, “Well, it’s going somewhere, and it’s doing something”.

Turn with me to Mark 1starting with verse 16:
Today, we are going to be studying about some movers and shakers in the New Testament.
Now as He (meaning Jesus) walked by the sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.
And straightway, they forsook their nets, and followed Him.

And straightway they forsook their nets…. Straightway is defined as immediately.
I can almost see them now, Simon and Andrew, busy, casting their nets into the sea for a catch. —- Jesus, who had just come out of His forty days of fasting and being tempted of the devil, in the wilderness, was on a mission, to collect some of the most rugged men, to follow Him, to be His companions for three years.

I don’t recall Jesus calling any who were not already doing something.
You might ask, “When is God going to call me, or give me something to do?”
My answer is, when you bloom where you are planted!
There is much to do in the kingdom of God. Get busy, take the initiative, find something to do. Ask.

Simon and Andrew were quick to respond. They left what they were doing, and followed Jesus, but not until they received the call, did they leave their business behind. Jesus had a plan for their lives and when the call came, they went, but they still had to be taught how to minister.

God has a plan for your life, but you need to stay busy, and seek Him daily, to find your intended place of service, your destiny.

In verse 17, Jesus said, … Come ye after Me….
Don’t take off and try to do it yourself; but …follow Me…and I will make you to become fishers of men. (I will shape you into, I will do construction on you, until you are fishers of men.)
I will teach you, and train you, I will spend time with you, and give you an opportunity to watch how I do it, and I will allow you “On-Hands experience”.

What would it be like if they decided to “go it on their own without the proper training? I can see them now—- Trying to do it by themselves: running here and there, exhausted, without much success.

Verse 19 —- And when He had gone a little farther thence, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were on the ship mending their nets.
James and John, had already pulled in their catch for the day, and were mending them, when Jesus arrived.
Verse 20 —- And straightway He called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the ship with hired servants, and went after Him.
There’s that straightway word again, which means immediately.
And immediately He called them.
Jesus knew, through fasting, and spending time with the Father, what His Father had instructed Him to do, and He wasted no time.
Jesus called His disciples immediately, and they responded immediately.

They must have said, “Dad, we’re out of this kind of fishing business; here are some men to help you. We know what our purpose is. We must follow Jesus.”

Now look at verse 21 —- And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day He entered into the synagogue, and taught.
Jesus had a ministry of His own, but He went to Church, He and His four disciples or learners went with Him.

Verse 22 —- And they were astonished at His doctrine (or teachings): for He taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.
They were amazed at the knowledge of Jesus and His authority, and we know the anointing makes the difference, but what was
Mark talking about when he
wrote…not as the scribes…? There were several things that caused His teaching to differ from that of the scribes. There was no lack of self-assertion or self-assurance in their teaching; but their words did not carry weight. Their teaching was based chiefly on tradition; but neglected judgment and mercy and faith. Christ’s teaching, on the contrary, was eminently or completely spiritual. Also, He practiced what He taught, unlike the scribes. They had religion, Jesus Had relationship with the Father.

Verse 23 —- And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,
Now, this was big-time. I can see these four new disciples, standing their amazed when this unclean spirit, who was the “strongman”, began to scream out.
Verse 24 —- Saying,… (now the demons are talking)…Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God.
The strong-man, this unclean spirit, is the leader of the demons in this man. In verse 23 we read …an unclean spirit…singular; and then we read in verse 24, …Let us alone…plural, This proves

It shows the immediate effect of our Lord’s preaching. This man was possessed by these demons, and the anointing of our Lord caused the demons to manifest in His presence.
In real truth, the preaching of Jesus has already thrown the whole world of evil spirits into a state of excitement and alarm.
The powers of darkness are beginning to tremble. They feel that One greater than Satan has appeared, and they ask, …What have we to do with Thee?…Why are You trying to drive us out of our possession? We have a right to take possession of sinners.

Verse 25 —- And Jesus rebuked Him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
Jesus didn’t toy with these demons like so many think they should now, He just told it to shut-up and get out of there.
This demon was fearful, but defiant.
Look at the next verse, verse 26 —- And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him.
He didn’t want to come out, but he had no choice, he had met a power stronger than his; much stronger;, no comparison; he had to come out, and he came out screaming. It no longer had control of this mans vocal cords; no longer could the demon talk.

Verse 27 —- And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth He even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.
They were actually saying, What is this new revelation?”
This gave more indication, or a sign, that this must be the promised Messiah, the true God; for He alone by His power could rule the evil spirits.
I believe, this is what they were discussing among themselves.
Verse 28 —- And immediately His fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.
We could go on in this Chapter, in verse 31, where Jesus took Simon’s mother-in-law by the hand, lifts her up, and immediately the fever left her.
What follows is, healings and deliverance’s, every where He appears.

I read in a commentary, there are approximately 10 times where straightway or immediately is found in this first Chapter of Mark, but the most important event or outcome, is that we get a new revelation of what Jesus was like. There is no way we can know it all, but we can learn as we study and follow our Savior.

Until next week.

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