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Posted by Jimmie Burroughs- Email this article to a friend
I recently ran across an obscure verse of Scripture in what is considered the oldest writing of the Bible, the book of Job, concerning “The paths of all who forget God”.
I’ve been thinking along these lines for several months now, and have done a lot of research and have already written several articles concerning the challenges we face in the United States and in the world today. I believe we are on the path we are on because as a nation we have forgotten God; The United States is following the same path as Europe who by their own definition is post Christian, but of course whether you believe that or not does not alter the facts relating to our present predicaments.
What is the greatest problem facing America?
Best Answer according to Yahoo answers – Chosen by Voters
“People who have turned away from Morale values, and have taken their eyes away from GOD…”
In the book of Job, we find these words, “So are the paths of all that forget God… Whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider’s web. He shall lean upon his house, but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure.” Job 8:13-15
My paraphrase of this scripture:
A nation who forgets God is trusting in a spider’s web. Everything it trusts in will collapse.
Now I’m a positive person and I believe that is a Christian attribute, however we can’t shut our eyes to what is happening around us. It is not so much the economy that is the problem, but the departure from God. There will be progress in time when there will be greater abundance as far as material things. Exponential technology certainly has some exciting things in store and some in the very near future. But that does not remedy our spiritual needs.
On the dollar bill still remains the statement “In God we trust” but I’m afraid that we as a nation would be more truthful if it read “In the dollar we trust.”
President Barack Obama said recently that the United States was no longer a Christian nation but now many religions.
In old colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, headquarters for the 13 Colonies is a church building where they still hold services. It was constructed in the 17 hundreds and was used by the forefathers of this county, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and others to worship God.
The pilgrims risked their lives to come here so they could have religious freedom to worship God. Our forefathers, the 55 men who signed the declaration of Independence, were Christians overwhelmingly: 51 were Christians 3 were Deists and one is unknown.
Nevertheless somewhere along the way our nation has turned from God, actually gradually along the way. The drift away from God had its roots in Europe long before the discovery of America. When the early pilgrims sowed the seeds of Christianity in the new world, there were also those who were sowing the tares of Deism. Deism is a philosophy that teaches that God created the universe but is not directly involved in it, but left it to run itself. Deism became the bridge between Christianity and the new age philosophy today called secular humanism. The philosophy of Deism which did teach the existence of God gradually evolved into secular humanism which is primarily atheistic or agnostic.
The drift away from God was accelerated with the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution actually had its start in England in 1773. It started with the first cotton spinning mill. Following this were more inventions and finally factories were built.
England did not want to share their success with the rest of the world so they forbid anyone working in factories to travel abroad.
Meanwhile America was trying to get their own Industrial Revolution started so they offered a significant reward for anyone coming up with the technology to build a cotton spinning mill.
It so happened that an Englishman by the name of Samuel Slater disguised himself and came to America and revealed from memory how to build cotton spinning mill and the ball was rolling and the Industrial Revelation was on its way in America.
Eli Whitney would later invent the Cotton Gin, Robert Fulton, the Steam Engine and Francis Cabot Lowell the American Textile Industry and many other inventers would add to this lineup over time.
The American Dream originally was the desire to worship God freely in the new world but as time went by it turned its focus away from God and on the material gain which now characterizes the American Dream.
The Industrial Revolution expanded the dream to financial independence and owning a home. However as automation came to industry and the need for skilled labor lessoned, people begin to look for other means to gain their dream.
That came with the availability of credit and the credit card. Homes could be bought for little down and financed for 30 years and other goods could be bought without any collateral. But people also begin to pursue get rich schemes.
A variety of seductive but elusive strategies have evolved, and today the three leading ways to instant wealth are large-prize television game shows, big-jackpot state lotteries and compensation lawsuits.
Presently however the American Dream is becoming a dream of the past with the recent downturn of the economy and the burst of the housing bubble.
So what lies ahead now? It is going to be different to say the least.
There are three things, not original with me, but commonly believed that will happen in this decade that will set it apart from any other decade we have ever seen and will contribute to the collapse spoken of in Job.
1. There will be a massive change in how we live our lives.
2. There will be no way to change the inevitable.
3. It will last for a very long time.
The focus today is on the economy that doesn’t seem to want to recover and the ever increasing cost of energy and the declining natural resources. As I mentioned earlier, there is hope in the future. Exponential technology will in time produce alternate methods of energy with solar energy being one of the most promising sources. More synthetic materials will replace those dependent on natural resources as plastics have replaced many metal parts on automobiles and other things, and eventually the economy will revive as a result.
I afraid that all the excitement of what technology can open up for the future only leads as further away from any dependence on God. While I’m for the abundance that technology promises to bring about, I am more concerned about America’s need to turn back to God.
Every prophesy of the Bible has been fulfilled right on schedule with the exception of those concerning the end time events which still lay in the future. You can rest assured that the verses in Job have already been fulfilled a number of times related to the nation Israel and others. It will happen to America also if there is not a spiritual awaking. “So Are the Paths of All That Forget God.”
Our hope as a nation and as individuals is only in God. Learn today how you can know God personally.
About the author: Jimmie Burroughs is a motivational speaker and author who has been involved in teaching Christian Personal Development for more than 30 years. There are hundreds of articles to help you on this website, Website Contents , in your person growth. Be sure to take vantage of the FREE offer to get the eBook “The 4 Pillars for Personal Development” while available.
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