Let's Build a Cross

 

Let's Build a Cross by Lona Walker

Political party affiliation was totally irrelevant that day in 1934 when veterans from WWI banded together to build a memorial to those who would not be coming home. They had journeyed to the Mojave Desert in search of physical and emotional healing after the war; part of that healing included remembering those they had left behind. They constructed a single white cross on a spot called Sunrise Rock where nearby the words could be read, “Erected in memory of the dead of all wars.”

It was more than just a cross to them and to the volunteers that would continue to maintain it. No one could have comprehended that many years later it would become a source of legal controversy. Sunrise Rock was owned by the United States Government and a religious symbol on government land had now been declared offensive.

Regardless of your political position concerning the 2012 election, I’m confident everyone could find common ground in one area—America has drastically changed. Whether you are encouraged or discouraged about the direction this nation is heading, you will certainly agree it is moving at the speed of light. It is now a different America.

 In 1963 the Church collectively gasped when Madalyn Murray O’Hair succeeded in winning a landmark case that ended prayer and Bible-reading in public schools. Little did we know the slippery slope our nation was on and that it would lead to the decline of our educational system. In schools today, suicides and shootings are common and the pledge of allegiance is a distant memory.

 Roe vs. Wade caught many off-guard when abortion was legalized in 1973 and referred to since as “a woman’s right to choose.” But the gory details of saline solutions, partial-birth abortions, and live-birth abortions were ignored by anyone having a moral compass as it snowballed out of control. Today “Planned Parenthood” has been called the largest abortion provider in the United States and receives almost half of its funding from you and me, the tax payers. Incredibly, they have been documented advising a young mother on how to obtain an abortion should she discover her baby is not the gender she desires. I don’t believe anyone suspected what our Supreme Court had done until we realized that a woman’s right to choose left them with such morbid choices. 

From a Christian perspective, this election season has proven the line is no longer blurred and the grey areas have morphed into contrasting shades of black and white. We are at a crossroads unlike any other, and the issues at stake could change the direction of our nation forever. The cultural landscape of America would now be unrecognizable to our forefathers who founded this country upon trust in God.  There will be a price to pay for those generations that walk the path behind us, as we teeter on the brink of adopting socialistic policies that threaten their freedoms and liberties. The removal of prayer from our schools was merely the first crack in our foundation. It sparked a landslide, bringing us to the issues we face today that can no longer be described as “right” and “left”—but as right and wrong.

The fact is that 23.5 million people are unemployed or underemployed with unemployment continuing to rise. A third of U.S. home owners with mortgages were still “underwater” on their mortgage as of the first quarter of 2012. Gas prices have soared to heights never before seen. Standard and Poors downgraded the U.S. credit rating for the first time in history last August as the national debt continues to hover at approximately $16 trillion and counting. Economists warn that we are most likely headed for a new recession in months to come. Not only this, three California cities have filed bankruptcy, while eight more have declared a fiscal emergency. The economic crisis is certainly not limited to California as cities from coast to coast are scrambling for an answer.

Courtrooms across the country are now void of the Ten Commandments while our government’s relationship with Israel continues to become more strained. “Happy Holidays” has replaced the “Merry Christmas” greeting to shoppers during the time we celebrate His birth. Lawsuits have forced nativity scenes to be removed from government property from sea to shining sea.

 We have seen “The National Day of Prayer” come under attack and have heard our leadership at its highest level proclaim that we are not a Christian nation. Sadly, according to the evidence, maybe we’re not anymore—but we are still home to millions of godly, Christian people that simply need to be reminded of who we collectively are.

The Statue of Liberty in the New York harbor welcomed immigrants from all over the world that played a role in making this nation great. Today the subject of immigration has been extremely divisive. Regardless of your position, there is one thing that can’t be disputed. Whether today’s immigrants are here legally or illegally—they all have a soul in need of a risen Savior. 

 The Mexican border has been the subject of much controversy and the “Dream Act” has been re-written and adjusted conveniently to fit the requirements of the party presenting it at the time. The crime wave due to wide-spread corruption and the Mexican drug cartel has sparked warnings from the U.S government advising us not to travel to the neighboring country of Mexico, however, people from that country are still coming to the U.S. While we may agree that illegal immigrants in many cases have overloaded our government systems and affected our economy, we should take advantage of this opportunity to reach them for Christ. We may not be able to go to them, but America has become a mission field in many ways. In this case we have the chance to show the love of God to immigrants we could not otherwise reach—regardless of their legal status.

More recently we have faced the most unthinkable challenge yet to our country, one that touches the very core of who we are—The Defense of Marriage Act.

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was enacted September 21, 1996 and is a United States federal law that defines marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman for federal and interstate recognition purposes in the United States. It passed both houses of Congress and was signed into law. Under the law, no U.S. state or political subdivision is required to recognize a same-sex marriage from another state. Section 3 of DOMA codifies the non-recognition of same-sex marriages for all federal purposes, including insurance benefits for government employees, Social Security survivors' benefits, and the filing of joint tax returns.

Today the leadership and legislators responsible for passing the law have changed their views and now advocate DOMA's repeal. The current administration announced in 2011 that it had determined that section 3 was unconstitutional. Though it would continue to enforce the law, it would no longer defend it in court.

What so many other attacks on our religious and moral freedoms could not do, the attempt to redefine marriage as we know it has. The Church is waking up. 

Christians from across the nation are girding up their armor to fight the battle. Pastors are affirming from their pulpits the seriousness of taking a stand.

Recently Pastor Josh Pennington of Christpoint Church in Joplin, MO preached a message titled, “Great Families Don’t Just Happen.” In it he said, “I understand people who are struggling in ‘that lifestyle’—people who are struggling with drugs—people who are struggling with alcohol—people who are struggling in the world, but as a church we cannot close our doors. We cannot shut our hearts of love to those people. We’ve got to learn to disciple them. However, at the same time, as a church, according to biblical authority, we do not endorse same-sex marriage. I understand that we have got to love people.  We want the prostitute, we want the drug addict, and we want the homosexual so they can have a transformation in their spirit and serve in the kingdom of God.”

Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, TX said in a recent interview: “Sometimes we look at being gay as a bigger sin than being proud or not telling the truth. I don’t think God categorizes sins.”

Bishop T.D. Jakes, founder and senior pastor of The Potter's House of Dallas, TX stated in an interview: “I’m called as a pastor to give the scriptural position on it. That doesn’t mean that I have to agree with you to love you; I don’t dislike anybody. I love everybody.” Then he went on to say, “I think sex between two people of the same sex is condemned in the Scriptures, and as long as it is condemned in the Scriptures, I don’t get to say what I think. I get to say what the Bible says.”

Rev. Billy Graham said, “Watching the moral decline of our country causes me great concern. I believe the home and marriage is the foundation of our society and must be protected.”

Bishop Anne Jimenez, founder and overseer of Rock Ministerial Fellowship and senior pastor of Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA recently told Charisma magazine: “Marriage is a biblical institution that mirrors the relationship between Jesus and His bride, the Church. It is a loving relationship that is at the core of our beliefs and something we will fight for.”

Bishop Anne is one of many actively doing something about the moral and spiritual decline of America as she is calling a Solemn Assembly in Philadelphia, “America for Jesus” on September 28 and 29 for the single purpose of praying for our nation.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “If the Church does not recapture its prophetic zeal, it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority.”

President Ronald Reagan reminded us that “If we ever forget that we’re one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.”

We are the only nation in the world where God over government is written into our constitution. Now is the time to remind ourselves of that.

According to “Your Vote Matters,” approximately 50 percent of Christians in America are registered to vote. Of those 50 percent, only half will actually do so. To quote from their website, “When a vote is cast to reflect God's moral principles, you're not merely taking advantage of your rights, but you're performing a duty essential in preserving, or in some cases, repairing, the moral fabric of our nation.”