The Answer to the Craziness

Some believers are pretty discouraged these days due to the craziness around them. They feel a bit like Elijah in the cave. In the story told in I Kings 19, Elijah asked God if he was only one left in the midst of the craziness of his generation.

You don’t need to look far to see the craziness in our generation: Christian leaders questioning the validity of hell, and others claiming they know when the Lord is coming back even though the Bible explicitly tells us no one will know the day or the hour. When we hear of another Christian leader falling from grace, and see the craziness of both compromise and legalism in sectors of Christianity, we can feel almost ashamed to be associated with the name Christian. And how about those television preachers who peddle their “snake oil” and promise great blessing to those who give to “their” ministry?

Believers and even Christian leaders can get discouraged and question if it is worth being fully committed to God?

The answer is YES!

God told Elijah when he was discouraged and felt alone: “There are 7,000 who have not submitted to Baal.”

Today there are millions of believers and Christian leaders who are the real deal — they love Jesus with a passion, are committed to prayer, take the Bible at face value, are faithful to their wives, love their children and their parents, love the body of Christ and carry a vision from God for our generation.

Week after week, I meet Christians like these across America and all over the world. During the next two weeks, I plan to fly around the globe discussing the Kingdom of God face to face with young Christian leaders from Malaysia, India, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Netherlands and beyond. I assure you … these young Christian leaders are committed to walk in obedience and humility before the Lord.

Thirty-five years ago I was a young Christian leader struggling with all the craziness I saw in parts of the church at that time. Some popular Christian leaders were doing stupid things. One breath of fresh air in those days was Billy Graham, who was at his peak of his ministry. Liz Taylor, the actress, with a completely different value system, was also at her peak. Thank God Billy remained faithful, but one day I picked up a Christian magazine and the writer of an article said, “If I read in the newspaper tomorrow that Billy Graham ran off with Elizabeth Taylor, I have already made my decision: I will continue to obey the Lord and walk in simple obedience to him.”

Man, that attitude was refreshing. That day, I made the same commitment and never looked back.

Let’s purpose in our hearts today to obey the Lord, walk in humility, stop the craziness, and join millions of others who are doing the same!