A big challenge for our children (and grandchildren) today? … Remaining morally pure in a corrupt culture! And it’s not just a “youth” problem … it’s the challenge we all face. Things once thought unthinkable by “religious folk” are now approved in the name of tolerance. Media flaunts relaxed morals and things the Bible calls “perversions.” The ancient directives regarding sexual morality in Proverbs, the teaching of Jesus, and the epistles are explained away as the relics of another era. The burning question for committed Christians is, how to remain “pure in heart” and “blameless in behavior” in a permissive culture?
Well, there are several Biblical answers to that question that we could address. I encountered an important one in my Bible reading this morning that we dare not forget…
“How can a young man (or woman) keep their way pure? By guarding it according to Your word! With my whole heart I seek You! Let me no wander from Your commandments! I have stored up (some versions say ‘treasured up’) Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You… In the way of Your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches! I will meditate on Your precepts and fix my eyes on Your ways. I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.” (from Psalm 119:9-16 ESV)
Anything that parents (and grandparents) can do to encourage Bible reading, Bible memorization, and/or Bible study by the youth in their family, it seems to me is a good idea (and as important as their kids taking their vitamins, eating healthy, getting the exercise they need and/or having the vaccinations they need). And for brand new, born again followers of Jesus (AND those of us who have been following the Lord for awhile)… we desperately need the Psalmist advice as well! Time spent internalizing God’s word is a healthy hedge against evil!
If I begin to neglect “coffee with the Lord” I can begin to tell it. I’m really glad for the time I spent with God’s word today!
Coffee With The Lord 