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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for
“Don’t Glorify Old Sins”
Hello, I’m
I dreamt that my children were children again.
There was a variety of people in someone’s home, a family-friendly affair.
I was sitting at the head of a table with two men on my right, two of my children on the left, and others milling around.
I and my children were listening as the two men, a bit younger than I, were bantering. Suddenly one of the men said to the other, “You did drugs.” The other said, “Well so did you,” and off they went, telling tales of the glory days, about run-ins with police and all the excitement and fun they had during the drug period of their lives.
Meanwhile, my children were soaking up the stories. I said, “Hey guys, let’s talk about something else,” as I nodded toward the children. They took the hint and that was that.
It was just a dream, but it tapped into some things I feel strongly about.
First of all, I don’t believe in glorifying old sins. If it was sinful, if it grieved the heart of God, if it grieved your parents, don’t revel in it. If God saved you from it, don’t rehash it like it was the good old days.
Look, I’m sure some funny things happened when you were drunk and high. And I’m sure some sad and pathetic things happened, too. My advice is to apply the advice of Paul in the book of Philippians, forget what is in the past, and press on towards what Christ Jesus has for you. (Philippians 3)
I know a Christian man who inexplicably went back to drinking after he had been saved and sober for many years. He had even been a teacher and a worship leader. How does that happen?
I think one reason can be the glorifying of old sinful behavior. If you tell the old tales like it was the best days of your life, at some point you may start believing it.
“Well Doug, why would a Christian talk about the old days like they were so good if they weren’t?”
I think there are several reasons. One is selective memory. Sometimes we gut the bad parts out of our memories – the empty feelings, the betrayals, the hurts, the shame, the sense of going nowhere.
Another is not filling your life with something better. If you used to party hardy on Friday nights, and now you just sit at home with an afghan on your lap, the old life can seem pretty attractive.
God has better plans than that. There is a world to change, a gospel to share, light to be shone, people to love. The Lord wants to make massive changes in this world through us, and sitting at home isn’t going to cut it.
An idle mind is the devil’s workshop, according to the old saying, and idle hands are the devil’s tools. That’s not in the Bible, of course, but there is some truth to it.
There really is a devil, and he really is a liar, a cheat and a killer. That’s what Jesus said in John 8:44.
I don’t know exactly what the devil and demons are doing, but it’s easy to picture them tempting Christians to go back to the old slop; and this sounds like a good formula for it:
1. Laugh a lot about the old party days while leaving out the sad parts.
2. Don’t fill your life with more worthy, Godly pursuits.
3. Listen to the lies that sin actually has something good to offer.
Now let’s go back to my dream. The men were laughing about their old druggie days. That was the first thing I feel strongly about.
The second thing I feel strongly about is watching what we say in front of the children.
Adult stories impact children. They become bigger than life in their little minds.
The other day I was talking to a detective. He was talking about people literally drowning to death on a dance floor. How is that possible? He said they take certain drugs that are popular these days, and they feel so dehydrated that they frantically drink water in a way that literally fills their lungs and they drown.
As he told me this, I was instantly taken back to a story an adult told me when I was a child. It was a fictional tale about a man who was cursed to drown, so he took a train into the middle of the desert where it would be impossible to drown. He suddenly dropped dead on the train. The cause of death? Da-da-da-dummmmm…drowning.
I’ve heard a million stories since then that I can’t recall, but I’m telling you, the stories we hear as children stick with us.
“Doug, what’s your point?” The point is that we need to watch what we say in front of the children. Lessons and values and truths are passed along through our stories.
If you are a Christian, beware of sitting around and laughing about your party times. You are sending a strong message to your children, whether you realize it or not.
Better to build a great legacy of stories about what the Lord has done in your life, and what He is doing through your life to make a difference in other lives.
And if you don’t have many stories like that, it’s time to get a hold of God and see what you should be doing.
Children are going to soak up your stories and learn from them.
The question is – what stories are you telling?
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May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m
© 2012
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