America is under a great attack from the dark side. Police killings, terrorist attacks, racial unrest, corruption, finger-pointing, demagoguery are all part of the obvious problems. It seems like the floodgates of evil have been opened and the demons are having a field day. Some will call it judgment, others will say it’s consequences.

Irrespective of your perspective, it is obvious that there are deep-rooted issues that need to be addressed. They are issues that have come to a head after years of bad leadership-both spiritual and political. Until there are changes in leadership, these types of issues will continue. We cannot keep doing the same thing and expect different results. This is how the dark side arises.

The question is, “What can we do?”

Many want me to tell them what to do. That is not my charge, nor my calling. But I can encourage you. In the deepest darkest night, the ships in the ocean look upon the horizon for signs of danger. If they see a lighthouse, they know they are approaching land and must exercise caution. That little bit of light shines through the darkness and gives direction, hope and safety.

Those of us who proclaim Christianity have a particular calling in times like these. Jesus said in Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.”

Ephesians 5:8 says, “For you were once darkness, but now are you light in the Lord: walk as children of light.”

Those who do not know the Lord cannot be held to the same standard as those of us who do. Yes, they need to obey the laws and understand that taking a life, or lives, is wrong. But in the absence of the light of the world, which is Jesus Christ, are their hearts changed beyond the law?

Romans 10:13-15 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”

You can make a difference. In fact, you are called by Christ to make a difference.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

America is experiencing a great darkness. Within you is the light of Christ. As Paul exhorts in Romans 13:10-12, “Love works no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. And this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.”

While many seek a political solution to the darkness, the best remedy for the dark side is the Light of Christ. You have it. Share it as the Holy Spirit leads.

Have a blessed and powerful day!

Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com

My oldest brother who was a coach of young men and was killed at 24 when a drunk driver hit him head on as he traveled to meet his team at a basketball game used to say around the supper table at the farm, “Only believe half of what you see and nothing of what you hear.” While I was only about eight years old at the time, that was a statement I pondered a lot. In high school and college, I was paid for my articles on various events by several news outlets, and later became an award-winning journalist. I wanted people to know that I was reporting the facts responsibly and that they could believe what they saw from me. Truth was not relative to me as a writer. How things have changed in journalism today.

Nowadays, we cannot trust that the news media will give the facts. There is a slant on news where the lines between reporting facts, editorializing, and just plain omitting details that change the entire basis of the event are so blurred that it is difficult to discern truth.

We have so many blogs by so many so-called journalists that even they do not know when they are writing factually or just offering their opinions. News programs that have the look and feel   of real news are often laced with opinions and half-truths, making it even more difficult to figure out what is going on. A twist of a word here, an alteration of an action there, and you has an entirely different “narrative.”

Take the case of Hillary Clinton’s health. You can see by her actions, the way she talks and laughs, the way she walks and carries herself, that something is amiss. And you can get several entirely different takes on her condition from just an allergy to pneumonia to the onset of dementia to stroke to heart condition to traumatic brain injury.

Her “doctors” are trying their best to convince people that she is physically and mentally fit to handle the office of president. Depending on the news outlet you read, view or listen to, you will hear one or more of the variables on these themes. The one thing that you can discern from all this is that Clinton has something wrong with her and nobody is telling us what it really is.

A good journalist without an agenda would get to the bottom of the story. But most are just reporting supposition. It is no wonder that Gallup reports that “Americans” trust and confidence in the mass media “to report the news fully, accurately and fairly” has dropped to its lowest level in Gallup polling history, with 32 percent saying they have a great deal or fair amount of trust in the media. This is down eight percentage points from last year.

2 Timothy 3:13 says, “But evil men will wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” The media in the United States was supposed to keep these deceivers in check, but they are so deceived themselves with strong personal opinions on morals and politics that they cannot see the truth.

Have a blessed and powerful day!

Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com