An Article of Faith

The Bible warns us to take action before it becomes too late:
“Today when you hear [God’s] voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled” (Hebrews 3:15 NLT).
The foundation of any nation is found in the hearts of its people. “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do” (Psalm 11:3 ESV)?
Warning signs that America has heart trouble are everywhere. Financially, we are facing crushing debt and abiding fear of economic meltdown. Sociologically, our families are splitting up and being redefined by cohabitation, divorce, and so-called same-sex marriage. Educationally, many schools are failing and our kids are falling behind other developed countries. Politically, we are divided and grid-locked while facing new kinds of global threats.
At some level, the message is sinking in. Polls show that most Americans agree that the country is on the wrong track. Something is desperately wrong, and we know it. But just how bad is it?
There is ample statistical evidence that all is not well in the U.S. (or in the rest of Western Civilization, for that matter). Yet, such statistics have become so familiar to us that we’ve begun to accept them as “normal.” But they aren’t. For example, our nation should not be defined by fatherlessness. There are more unmarried mothers under age 30 than married mothers, with 40 percent of all babies born out of wedlock and 48 percent of all first births to unmarried women.
What about imprisonment? More than seven million adults are on probation, on parole, in jail or prison – the most of any nation on earth.
Perversion? Forty million visitors peruse porn sites on the web – with the average age of first visits being 11 years old. And sadly, it’s the most “religious” states – the Bible Belt – that have the highest percentage.
A Culture of Death? Since 1973 the total number of lives lost to abortion is roughly equal to the collective world-wide death toll of WWII (approximately 60 million souls).
Chaos and Confusion? Biblical cultural standards have been jettisoned by government, the media, and a significant portion of the US population – even within the church.
National Debt? America’s national debt continues to grow and in the future we face $124 trillion in unfunded liabilities – more than the world’s GDP ($83 trillion) and over $1 million per U.S. taxpayer. Not to mention the lifestyle of individual indebtedness that plagues many US families (taken from: OneCry: A Nationwide Call for Spiritual Awakening. For more information see: www.ONECRY.com).
Only Christ can restore our nation – not congress. And God’s means of restoration is revival. And the key to revival is personal repentance and persevering prayer. All across the country leaders are joining their voices in ONECRY for God to send sweeping revival and spiritual awakening to our nation. Let’s join them:
“If My people,” declares the LORD, “who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV).

Jessie J. Charpentier Sr. is pastor of Jenkins Memorial Baptist Church in St. Martinville.