Torch, Spring 1992

i , // ~'-.. r~mi i~~ rn~t''Wijr~~i~ ~ijij by Dr. Paul Dixon, President W Dr. Dixon recently spoke to the Cedarville College fami ly about "Seizing a World of Opportunity in the Family." e are in deep, deep trouble as a allows the killing of the unborn, nation. The problem is not the recession attempts to justify the sinful homosexual of our economy but the collapse of our lifestyle, and promotes "safe sex" morality. A jury in Simi Valley, instead of scriptural abstinence in the California found four policemen not war against AIDS. Racism, immorality, guilty in the Rodney King trial and murder, rape, and robbery abound , and South Central Los Angeles exploded - we cry out in despair, "Is there any literally. Just as we had witnessed on hope?" videotape the apparent beating of Yes! Our hope is in God-and the Rodney King, we now saw the rioting, family. Lance Morrow, writing in TIME the looting , the arson, and the video of magazine May 11 , 1992, points out that Reginald Denny as he was pulled out of ironically the last episode of the Cosby his truck, beaten, and shot. All of this Show aired on the second night of the violence is simply the exclamation point riots. "It seemed perfect that Cosby, of a nation adrift morally .. .a nation that America's ideal fantasy father, should vanish just at that moment: video metaphysics. Cosby-Huxtable was a heartbreaking American illusion." The success of the Cosby Show was directly related to its emphasis on the family and family values . The show was one of my favorites, too. Yet the most important value was missing. There was no God in the Huxtable family. Apparently, God was left out of those eight years of weekly episodes on purpose. President Bush, after viewing the devastation in Los Angeles, said the answer to the problems of America's cities is to "find ways to strengthen the family." Cal Thomas, noting that some federal policies "undermine family stability," wrote, "Nothing will substitute for or have the same effect in the rearing of a child than a man who keeps his promises to his wife and loves his children." Our strength to fulfill family responsibilities can only come from God. Is God in our families? Oh, many of us are professing Christians. We worship God privately and corporately in our churches. Do we worship God as a family? Deuteronomy 6:6-7 is very pointed. "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house , when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up." Spiritually-minded Christians know that family worship is a must. The home is pivotal in God's plan for planet earth. Both the Old Testament and New Testament are pregnant with this emphasis: "My son, keep your father's command, and do not forsake the law of your mother. Bind them continually upon your heart; Tie them around your neck" (Proverbs 6:20,21). Our only hope as a nation is to imitate the people of God in Nehemiah's day. They began the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem "each in front of his own house" (Nehemiah 3:28b). We must immediately raise up the spiritual walls of our homes for the glory of God, the good of our own families, and the hope of the United States of America. This issue of the TORCH is devoted to worship . As we fulfill our mission at Cedarville College we teach our students about individual worship, the importance of the local church in worship, and the significance of godly families. Let's do more than believe in worship and talk about worship . Let's practice worship ...especially in our families. The hope of our lives , families, churches, and nation rests in the God we worship.