By AbbyA

JMathis wrote yesterday – It is very easy for us to laugh and roll our eyes in disbelief at the Tigers, Schwarzeneggers and Weiners of this world. It’s even easier for us to judge and wag our collective, holier-than-thou fingers at the Bishop Longs, Jim Bakkers, Ted Haggards and Catholic priests of the Christian world.  Who are these guys?  We’ve got a mega athlete, a high profile actor turned governor, a politician and a handful of Christian leaders.  They are all men with access to wealth, locally or nationally famous and hold the power card to influence their followers.  I am thinking Spiderman – With great power, comes great responsibility.  But, I am also thinking Jesus – From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.  Luke 12:48

What’s going on here?  From the same guys we are supposed to root for on the golf course, vote for on the ballot and gain wisdom from . . . From the same guys our kids see plastered on tv ads, behind podiums and under the cross . . . From the same guys, we see their moral compass spin out of whack.  We see their moral boundaries blur.  When did their own, presumably firm, decision-making process start to fall apart?

It certainly didn’t start the day Arnold slept with the maid.  It certainly didn’t start the day Tiger found himself juggling his wife and multiple lovers.  And it certainly didn’t start the day Weiner tweeted his package.  And, the spilled milk didn’t stop the day they all bawled through their public apologies on national television.  With so many casualties along the path of these men, it is probably hard for even them to count backwards to the day they allowed the pendulum to begin its swing off-center.   When exactly did they stop believing they were subject to the laws of morality?  Or that they could escape the natural law of actions and consequences?  Was it a built-in, individual weakness that came to the surface under too much stress and too much attention?  Or is it the battle of all men?

Yes, I think it is the battle of all men.  I think it is the desire of most men to gain wealth, notoriety and influence.  No matter the portion of the serving of any of the three, responsibility is required.  While I don’t think men function in the way of seeking balance as we ladies do.  I do think they tick in the way of decision.  I think one of the keys to prayer for our men suggested by JMathis is covering with prayer the decisions of the men in our lives.  It is the initial, small decisions that lead to eventual, large moral blunders.  Let’s pray together that men in our lives would be empowered to make Godly decisions.  That their decision-making would not be swayed by wealth or notoriety.  Let’s pray that they would harness their influence for good.  And let’s pray that, if ever a decision falls off course, that they would have the wisdom to . . . ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it.  Then you will find rest for your souls.  Jeremiah 6:16.