“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt – darkness that can be felt.’” Exodus 10:21

I experienced this physically this summer–darkness that you can feel.  My family and I were on a family vacation in Missouri and we visited a cave.  We were able to drive down several miles into the cave with a guide.  There was electricity in the cave and, boy, were my daughter and I happy about that.  There were beautiful structures to behold and lots of interesting history.  At one point in the journey the guide stopped and got out of the vehicle.  Most people never experience true and complete darkness, the complete absence of light…then, you guessed it, he proceeded to turn off the lights, several miles beneath the earth’s surface, completely void of light…darkness, darkness you could feel.  I felt an intense weight or heaviness and I felt like I could not catch my breath.  I literally had to talk myself out of a panic attack and I was afraid.  The strangest kind of fear too, I wasn’t afraid of what could be hiding in the darkness, I was afraid of the darkness itself.

That cave experience that summer morning is the perfect description of how I feel about our culture…the fear goes much deeper than being afraid of what could be lurking in the darkness. I am afraid of the darkness itself.

I am unsure if the darkness is so intense that it lulls us to sleep or if we are simply becoming more comfortable with it and adapting to existing in its presence…but make no mistake, it is a presence, a darkness that can be felt.

“So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days.  No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days.  Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived…” Exodus 10:22-23

What I am coming to understand is that likely the darkness of our culture will only become more and more devoid of light…but it is possible, even in the midst of it, that the people of God, the church, can have light in the places where we live.

Yesterday, the blog was about being fully awake and the question was posed…how do we do that?  What does that mean?

“The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”  John 1:5

“…God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.”  1 John 1:5

How do we shake ourselves awake to this palpable darkness in our culture?

• Stand near the Light. God is light.  Are we weighing our decisions about technology, social media, dating, and boundaries for our teenagers and children with the Light, with His Word?  Do we pray and ask the Lord’s direction before we give our 8-year olds cell phones or send our 7^th graders off on a group date to the dance?  Are we spending time with the Lord?  Are they? The Word says that we can ask for wisdom and our Good Father will give it liberally.  I do not want to tell you how to parent your children, but I can promise you we as the body of Christ, are not doing a good job of standing near the Light on this one.
• Sometimes the answer should simply be “No, that’s not how we choose to live in our home.” I would be a rich woman if I had a penny for every time a parent with tear-filled eyes said, “I regret ever giving them that phone.”  I have yet to meet one who said, “You know, I wish I had given in and allowed them to have a cell phone a few years earlier.”  Not to mention social media and apps with all of the filthy language, suggestive lip-syncing videos, inappropriate images, pornography, sexting, and bulling that happens every day right before your child’s eyes.  Every day.  If your child has access to Twitter, Instagram, Vine, Musical.ly, I am not exaggerating…they see things on a daily basis that grieve the Spirit.  When did we accept the idea?  The idea that we have no power to stand against this?  Do we feel helpless?  Or do we simply not see the harm in it?  I would love to know the answer, but I am afraid either will be equally as heartbreaking.  Believe me, friend, there is harm in it and we are not helpless.  Lulled to sleep and lazy…maybe…but not helpless.
• “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.  Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth.”  John 17:15-17. Sanctified.  Set apart. If your family serves the Living God, you are supposed to look different than your neighbors.  Do you? As I have pondered the question, how can we be fully awake…I began to ask the Lord why we couldn’t just have a list?

My list would look something like this…

• No smart phones until at least 16 years old, and even then, no internet.
• No social media EVER!
• No group dating in middle school.
• Watch how you dress. Stop fighting the school’s dress code and fight for your child’s modesty.
• If your sons have access to your phone, your device, or a device of their own they have seen pornography. They have.  (You don’t have the only boy, or girl for that matter, who is the exception.) And likely they have seen it…yes, even if you do have filters.
• You can’t give teens the access code to your home WIFI.
• You can’t trust that your 7-year old is watching Disney movies on your phone at their sibling’s ball games.
• Do you know what furries, tea-bagging. and yiffing is?  Yea, well I wish I didn’t either, but your teenagers likely do.
• Stop allowing teenagers to have drinks in Styrofoam cups at school functions…it isn’t always Dr. Pepper.
• Don’t be afraid to see what you see.

My list could go on for days.  But here is the truth…you cannot stay ahead of this thing.  My team and I spend hours each week dedicated to knowing what teens are doing, saying, and thinking–particularly with technology.  It is like a rushing river…you can’t be in the middle of it and stand up.  It would be likened to me saying, “I know heroine isn’t good for my child, but what are we going to do?  Everyone is using it.  It is just the world we live in.  I am just going to make it as safe as possible for my child to use.”  There is no safe way to use drugs, have sex, and use social media especially for our kids.  There is no safe way to participate in sin.

“Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived…”

I can’t give you the fool-proof list of do’s and don’ts…but I do have one question.  Is the Light on in your house?  Your family is desperate for it.  And the next generation is wandering the streets in darkness, they are desperate for it.  Can they feel it coming from your home?  Will we turn the Light on for them?

My love,

**Join me on September 18th for the Rescue Parenting Seminar hosted by CareNet Pregnancy Centers & Mentoring Programs.  Get all the details here!