Friday, September 6, 2019
To: Friends & Supporters
From: Carol Bauer
As you know, my wife, Carol, prepares a monthly prayer alert. I hope you will share Carol's thoughts with your friends and fellow worshipers. Thank you for taking an interest in her monthly devotion. --Gary
If you are like me, the waning days of summer often turn into a time of reflection. The days are noticeably shortening, the intensity of the sunlight lessens, the first few dry leaves dot the landscape and a new season is on the horizon. For young people it is a new school year with new teachers, friends and teams.
With this time of reflection comes the chance to pull back from the tug and pull of everyday responsibilities, the craziness of national politics and the intensity of personal interactions that can be clouded with political differences. Let me share some thoughts.
I don't know about you but I have become frustrated and exhausted by the efforts of those our social media jargon calls "influencers" (actors, athletes, musicians, YouTube stars, models and celebrity politicians) to control my personal choices.
These folks use their status to shame us for eating at a particular fast food restaurant, driving a particular kind of car, or for donating to President Trump or other Republicans.
They try to paint us as racists because we are patriotic and feel athletes representing the United States should show respect during the national anthem and save their opinions and protests for any other time.
We are shamed for believing there are two sexes and the herd of social jackals turns on us when we object to transgender athletes competing against and beating talented female athletes and depriving them of scholarships and championship status.
Sometimes it is a culture I no longer recognize.
It wasn't too many years ago that college and university campuses were known for being places where genuine tolerance flourished, where opposing ideas could be voiced, heard and explored while students thrived in an atmosphere that tested and honed their beliefs, and where they learned to defend them.
Today, those same institutions have become places where free speech is nearly non-existent. Left-wing professors and administrators make it very difficult for conservative students to meet and have a voice.
The so-called "liberals" of years ago have become bullies with a bullhorn and a leftist agenda. They aim to mold thinking, shut down debate and ostracize those who don't conform to their groupthink.
Into this toxic mix you throw the Millennial generation, our future leaders, who openly express their sense of loneliness, their lack of close friends and their immersion in social media dominated by these bullying forces and you have a recipe for real concern.
Please humbly go before our Heavenly Father pleading for the cultural life of our country, which is often on the leading edge of our political life. Ask the Lord to open the eyes of those who have hunkered down into their daily responsibilities and averted their gaze from the larger culture.
God, remind us that the country our families will live in tomorrow, next year and decades from now is being formed and birthed right now. To stand back and purposely stay uninvolved in cultural decisions is to cede our shared future to those whose beliefs and norms are starkly different from ours and our history.
Seek time and space for reflection. Ask God for guidance on where you can make an impact in your own circle of influence. Savor and celebrate the role the Lord has given you to be an influencer and pray for opportunities to winsomely and effectively point out the long term cultural impact of choices made today.
Ask the Lord for strength, wisdom and joy in the opportunity to mold the future of the country.
There's one other concern to bring to the table. For the most part, today's young people have a glaring lack of appreciation for their own country and its history. Study after study shows many do not know basic American history.
You only need to watch a few episodes of Jeopardy, whose contestants are the cream of the crop, to see this in real time. Shockingly, many can't name the century of the Civil War or from what country we fought for our independence.
Couple this lack of knowledge with the fact that what they do know of American history is often a one-sided view of America's shortcomings or a slanted view of history devoid of context. There is little emphasis on the beauty of the American experiment, its aspirational nature and the country's preeminent place in world history.
When these cultural threads are pulled together, a picture emerges that should concern all of us. Differences have devolved into public bullying or shaming, deep friendships based on mutual accountability are being replaced by social media "friends” leading to a deep sense of loneliness, and an appreciation for the grand American experiment is mostly lacking.
Ask our Heavenly Father to guide you to a new appreciation of American history and the opportunities this country provides us. Seek His guidance to open your eyes to the wonder of American exceptionalism.
Pray for the balanced insights that come from acknowledging that there is always room for change and improvement but that the underling foundation of this country and the freedoms and growth it has brought to countless millions is unmatched in the world. As influencers, ask God to widen your circle of impact.
Finally, as the next 14 months of the political calendar unfold, keep your eyes and ears open to the priorities and plans of candidates on the ballot seeking our votes. Take the opportunities of town hall settings, call-in shows and other public forums to politely ask questions of those who seek to lead us but often seem outside of mainstream thinking.
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