Public Blog

It is hard to believe that another year is coming to a close.  It seems like 2019 just started a few days ago.  Did you set any goals for the year or make any New Year’s resolutions?  Did you achieve success this year?  Everyone desires to find success but how can one measure and determine true success?

Unfortunately, too many people measure success by the world’s standards.  I have found that there are four criteria that are often used to measure one’s success.  I call them the four Ps of worldly success.  These are:

• power
• prestige
• possessions
• position

These measures of success are closely related to one another and often overlap each other.  Some believe that if they had the power to do whatever they desire, that would bring them success.  Others think that having a certain appearance that is prestigious in other people’s eyes will determine their success.  A great number of individuals strive to obtain success through financial wealth and/or possessing more and more stuff.  Finally, there are those that believe they will be successful if they were able to climb the corporate ladder and get to the top.

The sad reality of measuring success by these criteria is that they are all temporal measures.  In fact, if I use any or all of these measures for determining success, I am setting myself up to eventually be a loser.  This is because a day will come when I won’t be able to maintain a certain level of power and I will lose any sense of prestige – whether it is my physical appearance or some other form of status.  Possessions can also be lost in a moment of time and someone will eventually replace me in any position I might hold.

I have found another very interesting thing about people who try to find success by striving for one or more of these worldly standards.  It seems like many who achieve these measures of success struggle with such things as depression, addiction, broken relationships, etc.  Examples of this are common in professional sports and Hollywood.  Why is this so common with people who seem to have it all — power, prestige, possessions and/or position?

Many years ago, I read a study that tried to measure what caused people to feel successful in life.  Even though many people believed that achieving one or more of the four Ps of success would bring them satisfaction in life, they found out that even when they achieved one of these measures, something was still missing.  It was discovered that the one thing that gave a person a sense of true success was when someone that he/she saw as being a significant person in his/her life approved of him/her.

I have come to believe that this is true for each and every individual.  For many people this significant other person might be a parent, coach, spouse or teacher.  This is why a person can be seen as being very successful and may even have a large fan base and still end up destroying his life.  It is because there was someone that he wanted to please but that person never gave them the affirmation he was looking for.

This is why it is so important for parents, pastors and educators to speak truth in love into the lives of those they influence.  It is your approval they may be seeking more than anything else in life.  Sometimes the most difficult person you have to deal with is the one who desperately wants your approval.  This is why it is so important to see every person as an image bearer of God.  When we do this, we will see their true value and will treat them appropriately.

Yes, we need to do all we can to encourage and challenge others to be the best that they can be as image bearers of God.  However, it is also important to look at our own lives and examine what we are measuring our success by.  Is it one or more of the four Ps?  Or is it someone that we really want to have approval from?  The truth is that the things of this world will eventually fade away and other people will disappoint us.

So how does one find true success.  I believe it is to make only one person our most significant other in our lives.  That person is God, Himself.  When God becomes our significant other, we will never be disappointed.  Probably the most familiar verse in the Bible about success is,

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.  Joshua 1:8 (NKJV)

When do I accomplish the greatest sense of success in my life?  It is when I,

• surrender daily to God’s will
• spend time with God in His Word
• obey Him

When these three things are directing my life, I am successful.  Paul found true success by striving to do these three things.  When he did them, his priorities changed and he found true success.

But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3:7-8 (NKJV)

The need for power, prestige, possessions and/or position fades away when I make Christ my significant other.  When this happens, I am successful!

Recently, I had the privilege of speaking at a worldview conference sponsored by Precept Marketing and BJ Press at the Creation Museum.  These conferences are conducted 3-4 times a year at various venues around the country.  The team of speakers that has been put together is impressive, to say the least.  Jeff Keaton, chairman of Renewanation, George Barna, Ben Schettler, President of the Center for Truth in Love, and Dr. Brian Smith, BJ Press always bring very challenging messages on the importance of developing a biblical worldview and teaching from that perspective.  Dr. Ken Ham closed out this specific conference.

The reason why I am mentioning this in this week’s blog is that I came away from this conference with a greater burden about what type of future our children and youth will be faced with.  There was a different spirit throughout this 3-day conference than what I had sensed in others.  Each and every speaker closed his presentation with a strong challenge to the Christian educators present to be more determined to instill a biblical worldview in the hearts and minds of their students.  There was a sense of urgency like I had not experienced previously.

As I have been contemplating all that was presented and praying about how to move forward in my own ministry, I continuously came across articles and other information that caused me to realize the enormity of the crisis that is facing us in today’s culture.  I saw a commercial that someone had referenced as being the “creepiest commercial” he had ever seen.

This commercial was produced by Coca Cola for its Argentinian audience.  It shows parents and others preparing young people in drag and other LGBTQ symbols for participation in a “Pride” event.  It is shown with a soothing rendition of the song, You Will Never Walk Alone, being played in the background.  Toward the end with teenagers going off to join a “pride parade” with who I supposed was a father watching and these words on the screen.  What you feel when someone wants to choose to be happy.  The screen then shows these words before showing the Sprite logo.  You are not alone!  As I watched this in disbelief, I was once again hit with a sense of urgency.

Right before leaving for church this morning, I came across an article that shook me even more than this commercial had.  This wasn’t something that was shown in another country.  Rather, this was a report about something that happened right here in my backyard, so to speak.  This article reported on what happened in a public school in Texas a short time ago.  The Stream published an article on November 16th with the main title, Texas Teacher Defends Drag Queen Class.

The article reported about a Cosmology class at this school that invited a drag queen to come into the class to “teach students how to apply makeup.”  As you might expect, this resulted in an outcry by many parents who took their concerns to the district’s school board meeting.  Even though this should have been enough for parents, especially Christians, to stand up and say enough is enough, there was even something more outrageous that was included in this article.  It was reported that another teacher in the school posted these thoughts on social media.

I believe that raising a child is the responsibility of the community, and that parents should not have the final say. Let’s be honest, some of you don’t know what is best for your kids.  Parents believe they should be able to storm the school in the name of political and religious beliefs if something happens in the school that they are morally opposed to. They forget that we make a promise to prepare their children to live in a diverse world. We are not required to protect the misguided, bigoted views of their parents. (emphasis mine)

At first, I couldn’t believe that I was reading about how teachers in our society’s school system look at parents and their moral values.  The quote by this teacher also included the following advice to parents.

If you want your children educated with your values, find a private school that will do it. The public education system is not here to serve your archaic beliefs.

Finally, the truth behind the values being taught in secular educational institutions is being boldly announced.  The principal of this school addressed the parents at the board meeting and explained the two major factors that drive their educational decisions.  They are:

1. Is this what’s best for kids?
2. Is this going to help us grow academically?

She then explained, “If the answer to these questions is no, then we move on. But if the answer is yes, then we are moving in the right direction.”  However, who determines the answers to these questions?  It is not the parents!  It is the educators!  The teacher who posted the above statements on social media also spoke at the meeting and boldly stated, “I think as a district we need to make an initiative to teach our kids to be tolerant and respectful.”

Driving to church I was overwhelmed by the sense of urgency that had been weighing heavily on my mind ever since I left the Creation Museum a few days ago.  However, the sense of urgency was not about how dark the culture around us is becoming.  It is not about what the media is bombarding our young people with or what is happening in secular schools as they indoctrinate the next generation in atheistic and/or naturalistic worldviews.  The sense of urgency that I am burdened about is where are Christians — parents, church leaders and educators — when it comes to our worldview beliefs.

If Barna is accurate with his research, the reality is that a very small percentage of Christian adults possess a biblical worldview.  When this is looked at from a generational perspective, it is clear that the younger generations are less likely to think biblically about all of life.  In fact, only 4%, 1 of 25, of individuals that make up the Millennial Generation (which is the primary parenting and teaching generation today) has a biblical worldview.

Over the past several years, the conviction about the absolute necessity of providing a kingdom education to children and youth has taken a firmer grip on me than ever before.  So that you understand what I mean by this, please note that kingdom education only takes place when God reigns as king in the entire educational process.  For God to reign as king in the education provided children and youth at home, church and school, every parent, church leader and educator must know what God’s Word says about education.  This requires those of us who are influencing the next generation to embrace a biblical philosophy of education and develop a strong biblical worldview.  This won’t happen when we attend a workshop on these topics and then move on to other things.  Since I have been involved in the teaching profession for over 50 years, I understand that I have to continually renew my mind and intentionally study to better understand God’s plan for educating future generations.  If this is not being done on an intentional and continual way, will Christian schools be an answer to the madness that is happening in secular schools each and every day? Do you sense the urgency?

We hear it all the time!  We use it all the time!  However, how often does one take the time to think about what it means?  That is a question that I have wrestled with for several years.  You might be asking yourself, what on earth is he talking about?  I am talking about the term “Christian”.  Here are just a few of the many ways I have seen and heard “Christian” used,

• a Christian worldview
• thinking Christianly
• the Christian mind
• a Christian environment
• a Christian nation
• Christian education
• a Christian school
• Christian leadership

You can probably come up with several more ways that the term “Christian” is used to identify someone or something.  Recently, I was reading the findings of some significant research that ACSI has done on identifying key elements of a flourishing Christian school.  You can find the report here.  It is not my intention to review this research in this blog.  I mention it only because I found another way that the term “Christian” is used.  In this report, an article by John Hull was referenced.  In an article, Aiming for Christian Education, Hull identified the,

…Christian perspective as the defining concept in Christian education

The report went on to quote Hull as stating that the,

Christian perspective must reshape and redirect the curriculum, pedagogical theory, student evaluation, educational, goals, and school structure

First, I want to say that I completely agree with what I think the author is saying.  However, my question is, what is a Christian perspective?  When the term “Christian” is used as an adjective, how do most people define it?  I believe it has become so subjective that it has lost almost all of its true meaning.

Luke was one of the New Testament writers who used the word Christian in the book of Acts.

And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.  Acts 11:26 (KJV)

The first thing one needs to understand about this very important term is that believers did not refer to themselves by it.  They referred to themselves as disciples, brethren, saints, believers, etc..  It was unbelievers who called the disciples “Christians.”  Most Bible scholars believe that the term was used in a derogatory way as it implied a form of slavery.  These unbelievers looked at Jesus’ disciples as slaves of Christ!  From this original meaning, the term “Christian” became equated with the concept of being “Christ-like.”

John wrote about the deep meaning that comes with being associated with the name of Jesus Christ,

He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.  1 John 2:6 (NKJV)

If we are going to be called by His name, we are to walk as He walked — our life should reflect His life!  Unfortunately, the term “Christian” has been so watered down that this type of accountability has all but disappeared from the life of the average believer.  In fact, when I conduct staff development workshops and ask believers what the term “Christian” means today, the most common response I get is that it refers to a person who is nice and goes to church.

Because of this subjective use of the term “Christian”, I very seldom use it any more.  It is my conviction that we need to be more objective when referring to the various topics like the ones listed in the bullet list above.  This is why I believe it is important to use another term to describe such topics and that term is biblical.

What meaning do you give to such terms as:

• a biblical worldview?
• thinking biblically?
• a biblical mind?
• biblical education?
• a biblical school?
• biblical leadership?
• a biblical perspective?

I can remember a time when a group of writers were developing an administrator handbook for early childhood programs.  I was given a draft of the manual to review.  It was a well-written manuscript and I only had one change that needed to be made.  I told the editor to go back to the authors and have them change every time they used “Christian” to define something to “biblical.”  The first reaction I received was that there were some things that could be referred to as Christian but may not be biblical.  I said, really?  How can something be Christian and not biblical?

You may have heard the statement, the one who defines the term usually wins the debate.  It is time to move from the subjective to the absolute.  Let’s make sure we are biblical in all we think, say, and do.  What are your thoughts?  Be sure to leave a comment below.

For the past couple of weeks I have been sharing with you some of the cultural battles that we are facing and how it impacts the education we give our children.  There is no doubt about it.  We are in an intense culture war for the hearts and minds of future generations.  It is important that we understand the intensity and seriousness of this cosmic battle.  However, what is more important is that we are prepared for what we most likely will be facing in the very near future.

I read a blog that was written by Dr. Irwin Lutzer a couple of days ago.  Dr. Lutzer has consistently sounded warnings about how we, as Christians, are facing similar challenges that Christians in Hitler’s day experienced.  Some of his earlier writings were quite frightening to say the least.  I found this recent article to be equally alarming.

In his post, he shared what happened to a pastor and his church a few weeks ago.  This particular congregation is facing some pretty intense persecution.  These attacks are a result of a sermon that the pastor preached on October 13th.  The sermon was taken from Genesis 1.  As part of the pastor’s series on Genesis, the pastor preached on Genesis 1:27 and what God says about gender.  He explained what this verse clearly states.

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:27 (NKJV) (emphasis mine)

Lutzer noted that the message was “thoughtful, welcoming, and non-judgmental.”  You probably have guessed what happened on Monday following this sermon.  There was a social media firestorm that brought strong condemnation on the pastor and the church.  Lutzer explained,

The current culture rejects civil discourse, rational discussions, and honest evaluations of biological and scientific evidence accepted by many doctors which state that gender tampering can be harmful for children and, for that matter, adults.

He went on to state,

Simply raising these questions has resulted in hatred and vilification of anyone who dares to ask.

The point that I took away from this post was that anyone who stands for truth and biblical morality better be ready for strong opposition and even persecution.  We are already seeing early signs of this and it is only going to intensify as we continue living in a secular society.  I found it interesting that when I opened my Bible app the other day to read the Verse of the Day, it said this.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.  Matthew 5:10-12 (NKJV)

Lutzer decries that the church has succumbed to the idea that Christians must be known for what they are for and not what they are against.  This has led to a deafening silence about major cultural issues.  The consequences of this silence can be disastrous.

Lutzer challenges Christians to face the moral crisis of our day with courage.  In fact, he explained that,

It has been aptly stated that “a Christianity without courage is cultural atheism.”

Christian parents, church leaders and educators must be equipped for battle!  This is especially true when it comes to giving our children and youth a biblical education.  I found several questions swirling in my mind as I thought about the coming battle that we most surely will face.

1. Are we willing to stand firm on Scripture when it comes to such issues as gender fluidity and other related topics?
2. What will be our response when opposition and persecution comes?
3. What will we do when accrediting agencies try to force us to accept positions that go against God’s Word?
4. Are we ready for opposition that may come in the form of rejection by athletic and/or fine arts organizations?
5. Will our staff members and families stay with us when we take a stand on truth and biblical morality?

These are the real questions that are key to the sustainability of biblical worldview education in a pagan society.  The answers to these questions will, I believe, depend on whether or not our staff and board members, parents and church leaders develop a strong biblical worldview and know, understand and are committed to a biblical philosophy of education.

My fear is that many will not be prepared for this challenge.  I continue to be concerned about the lack of staff development on these critical matters.  I am not suggesting that we ignore methodology and best practices.  What I am saying is that we must become more intentional on instilling a biblical worldview and biblical philosophy of education in the hearts and minds of our teachers and parents.  That is what Kingdom Education Ministries is all about!

As Lutzer put it, silence is not an option.  However, if we don’t think biblically, we won’t have anything to say!  Lutzer’s closing words need to be heeded by all of us.

I think I hear Him [God] saying to us what He said to the church in Sardis:  “Wake up and strengthen what remains.”

It is hard to comprehend where society has slid to over the last decade.  I would have never thought we would be facing what we are having to deal with in everyday life today.  If you have been receiving these blog posts for any period of time, you know that I am very concerned about how Christians are educating their children.  I once was convinced that when it became clear that secular education was destroying the hearts and minds of students, Christian parents would rush to give their children a biblically based education.  However, that has not become a reality by any stretch of the imagination.  It seems like, no matter what is poured into our children’s minds, parents seem to be okay with it.

I believe that one of the main reasons why we continue to provide our children with a secular education is because we somehow think that it isn’t so bad in our school.  Yes it may happen in some rare cases in other schools but not where we send our children to school.  Unfortunately, it is happening in every secular educational program, whether it be in public, private or home schools.

Another reason why we don’t concern ourselves enough with the education our children are receiving in school is that we think that schooling is only about academics.  The home and church deals with the spiritual aspects of life.  Whenever I hear something like this, I realize that many, if not most, Christians don’t understand what really takes place in every educational institution.  All education is aimed at shaping a child’s worldview — his or her belief system.  Kevin Swanson makes this point very clear when he wrote,

The main business of all education is the communication of ideas.  Upgrade: 10 Secrets for the Best Education for Your Child

It is time to wake up and understand that every educational effort is driven by the pursuit of some god.  This fact was brought home to me, once again, last week.  My good friend, Dr. Christian Overman, has been publishing a series of blogs on the dangers of Critical Race Theory.  Last week’s post was especially startling to me as I read it.  Dr. Overman showed how politically correct mathematics has become in many schools.  As I read this post, I thought about all the times when I have heard people say that math education is one subject that can be taught in a spiritually neutral manner.  After all, math facts are just that — FACTS!

The reality is there isn’t a subject that can be taught void of installing some beliefs and values.  Overman wrote about how one public school’s math curriculum contains the following objectives.  (Click here to read Overman’s article.)

The students will be able to identify how math has been and continues to be used to oppress and marginalize people and communities of color.

The students will understand how Western mathematics has been used as a means of power and oppression.

The students will explain how math dictates economic oppression.

Students will discuss essential questions such as: Who holds power in a mathematical classroom? and When has math been used historically to resist and liberate? and Who gets to say if an answer is right? and How can we use math to measure the impact of activism?

Did you get a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach as you read these objectives?  Do you fully understand the battle that is being waged through this math program?  Can you believe that students are actually being told that math is relative?  This is what is being implied by the question, Who gets to say if an answer is right?  There will be some parents who learn that this is going on and they may voice some concerns.  However, the majority of parents, including most Christian parents, won’t even know this stuff is being taught to their children or, if they do, they won’t do anything about it.

Listen to the sad words that one educator posted on Twitter a few days ago.  This teacher was apologizing to new teachers who have been told that teaching is all about engaging students in meaningful learning experiences.

New teachers, I’m sorry if we veteran educators have misguided you about the profession.  It’s not about cute classrooms & trendy ideas.  It’s political.  It’s advocacy.  It’s the front line of battle for the future of our nation.  Go no further if you’re not ready.  Jim Dearybury

Education, especially schooling, has never been, is not now, or ever will be spiritually neutral.  All education is determined to shape the worldview of its students.  I only wish that Christians would wake up.  I pray to see the day when Christians would have the same determination to shape their children’s worldview biblically as the world has to shape student’s belief systems from a secular, anti-Christian worldview perspective.

Seldom does a day go by that I don’t have something cross my desk that disturbs me.  Many times these things are sent to me by friends and coworkers, for which I am very thankful.  As I read and study various articles, quotes, tweets, etc. that I receive, God begins to pull them together and they end up being the subject of one of my blog posts.  Such is the case today.

This past week was bizarre to say the least.  As I read various articles, I was literally shocked and amazed at where the culture has taken us.  Here are some of the few things that took place last week.

• Students at a seminary chapel confessed to plants.  Students took turns sitting in front of a group of plants and asking the plants to forgive them for various wrongs they had done against them.  The seminary tweeted, “Today in chapel, we confessed to plants.  Together, we held our grief, joy, regret, hope, guilt, and sorrow in prayer; offering them to the beings who sustain us but whose gift we too often fail to honor.  What do you confess to the plants in your life?” (emphasis mine)
• It was announced on a radio show that in the UK they have now identified 100 different genders.
• Authorities are investigating the finding of over 2,200 aborted babies that an abortion doctor had stored in his garage.
• Two psychologists were highlighted in a Newsweek article who claimed that human cannibalism should be considered normal since humans are simply one of many animals in nature.  The article mentioned how another person tried to argue that if human meat was a part of our diet, it would help the global warming crisis we are facing.

When I tried to make sense out of all of this, my first thought was something I had heard quite some time ago.  It went something like this.  If there is no God, anything is okay!  Of course, these types of things can only be understood through the lens of a biblical worldview.  Because of the Fall, we live in a world that is marred by sin.  The depravity of man is real and the only answer to these startling realities is redemption through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ — the Gospel.

However, the most troubling thing I read this week wasn’t one of the things I have mentioned above.  It was something that John Stonestreet wrote about in one of his Breakpoint Commentaries.  Stonestreet pointed out that Pete Buttigieg, one of the US presidential hopefuls, is getting a lot of coverage because he refers to the Bible to support his positions for abortion, same-sex marriage and socialistic economic policies.  The alarming thing about this is not Buttigieg’s misuse of the Bible, but the eerie silence from Christians refuting his claims with biblical truth.  Stonestreet suggests that there is a void in Christianity because church leaders are not presenting biblical truth related to these culture issues to their members.

That brings me to another statement that came across my desk this week.  It basically said that there is a battle going on in Christianity today related to God’s Word.  But it isn’t about inerrancy.  Even though the inerrancy of Scripture is always under attack, the major battle that needs to be fought is on the authority of Scripture.  I am hearing more and more Christians claim that they believe the Bible is God’s Word and it is true.   However, I am seeing fewer and fewer Christians actually living their lives as if God’s Word is true.  The question that must be asked and answered by each and every Christian is this.  Am I willing to put myself under the authority of God’s Word?  This is where I see the disconnect in so many Christians’ lives when it comes to some of the startling things that are taking place in society all around them.

Dr. Tony Evans challenged his congregation about this very matter recently.  He said that too many Christians come to church and are only “milk” Christians.  They want to hear things that make them feel good.  They don’t want to be “meat” Christians where they have to chew and wrestle with God’s Word and actually apply it to real life.

My friend, Pastor James McMenis, recently said that whatever principles you follow, determines what prince rules your life.  If you follow the principles of the world, the prince of this world is really your god.  He went on to explain that the same word is used in Scripture when it refers to princes, principles and principalities.  It carries the connotation of high rank or fundamental beliefs.  We need to hold the principles found in God’s Word as our highest authority in all of life.

I have found this to be true when it comes to my book, Kingdom Education.  Many Christians have read the biblical principles that are presented in the book.  After reading them, they will say amen to them.  I hear them say that they believe them.  However, when it comes to making a decision where their children go to school, they basically ignore them and send them to a secular school where few, if any, of these principles are practiced.

If Christian parents, church leaders and educators don’t want our children to be taken captive by the prince of this world, we must teach them to follow biblical principles in every area of their lives.  However, to do this we must submit ourselves to the authority of God’s Word.  This means we must read it!  We must study it!  We must live it!  If not, our children may grow up and one day be confessing to plants in a chapel service.