Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Religion Columnist
The younger generation doesn’t know who Paul Harvey was, but for those of my age, we listened to Paul Harvey and his editorials on the radio every day. Born in 1918 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Harvey became the radio voice of conservative America from the 1950s through the 1990s. Millions of Americans tuned in every day to hear his commentaries. I can still hear the words, “Hello Americans, this is Paul Harvey. Stand by for NEWS!”.
Fast forward to this past week when a link on Facebook featured one of those commentaries from a radio broadcast in 1965. In fact, the column called, “If I Were the Devil” first appeared in print in 1964. As I listened carefully, I couldn’t believe the words I was hearing. How could these thoughts from half a century before, now be fact in our country?
If I were listening live that day, I would think Paul Harvey was talking about a science-fiction novel that could never happen in reality. It did. While some may think this is simply politics, not a subject suitable for a column, such as this, it is more about our apathy of allowing the devil to take so many freedoms away from Christians.
One of the comments of allowing the devil to take over our country was this, “Thus I would evict God from the courthouse, then the schoolhouse, then from the House of Congress”. What seemed impossible 50 years ago, is actually happening today.
I remember when the school day began with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. Before I was out of grade school, there was no more prayer in the classroom. As for the Pledge of Allegiance, that too was tossed to the side in the interest of more teaching time.
Putting aside the classroom, another prophetic quote caught my attention, “If I were the Devil I’d take from those who have and give to those who wanted until I had killed the incentive of the ambitious”. This is very evident in our community as dozens of buildings stand empty that once had thriving businesses. Those who worked hard to provide for their families are taxed and potential employees find it much easier to collect a check instead of working for wages.
What happened didn’t occur overnight, instead it was a long, slow process where people drifted away from God and instead believed the lies from the devil. It was so gradual, we weren't aware of our religious freedom, being taken from us. Now words like "tolerance" are being crammed down our throats. It is fine for Christians to be persecuted, but one should never offend someone with an alternative lifestyle.While it is important to follow the laws of the land, there comes a time when we must say enough is enough. In 2 Chronicles it says, "If me people which are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Now is the time to quit being apathetic and start praying that we will turn to the moral values that made this country so great.
Debra Whittington is a longtime resident of Tucumcari. Contact her at:
