The Lost Boys – Epidemic Fatherlessness Creating Deadly Consequences

• by Kenny Luck
• in Culture · Marriage & Family · Men
• — 17 Oct, 2013

photo credit: HAMED MASOUMI

Bored, unsupervised, fatherless boys are to policemen what “unaccounted for” uranium represents to counter-terrorism worldwide—a threat to peace, to innocent people, and a major problem that demands attention.   Among boys all it takes to “weaponize” the plentiful supply of youthranium in our country today is a really bad idea offered in vacuum of moral convictions.  Deep within the brain of one our nation’s fatherless at the center of the latest “boys gone evil” news story, a spark was felt, a neuron fired, and words were expressed.  “I got it!” he says. “Wouldn’t it be cool if… we killed someone?”    The idea is welcomed and executed without filters or objection.  This is gonna be fun.
Meet the Lost Boys.
They have been on their own since they were little and have remained on their own as boys hoping to become men.  Raised by single mothers, they have been unsupervised and un-mentored by any male figure as long they can remember.  The macabre and toxic excitement rising from this deadly brainstorm is not just about a lazy summer, it’s about becoming men in a cesspool of broken male culture, character, and conduct that becomes the norm for lost boys.  This broken culture produces beliefs (about self and others) and behaviors shaped by peer angst and self loathing instead offatherly concern and modeling.   The result:  broken male culture that trains young men to act selfishly and separate their hearts from their heads when a decision they make impacts others negatively.  It’s called alexithymia.  Look it up.  The root words that form the word mean to “repel” (alexo) and “the soul” (thumos).  It is a picture of being emotionally dead.
Fatherlessness is creating these types of boys by the millions with multiplied billions of their social interactions creating a titanic wave of injustice for innocent people.     Emotionally unaware and socially detached, these boys cannot connect their actions with the feelings of others. This emotional compartmentalization provides the inner freedom and sanction necessary to kill, make others suffer, and then talk about it objectively like the young men in this case.  The police interviews with these boys are surreal.   They talk about killing a man the way a person would describe building a roast beef sandwich.  It’s on the level of “We were hungry so we ate.”
Totally removed from all this and living with plenty of purpose was another young man who was unaware that his time on planet earth was drawing to a tragic and senseless close. Christopher Lane’s life was anything but boring.  He was a college athlete and leader who met a wonderful girl living in Duncan Oklahoma.  Visiting his girlfriend and deciding to go for a jog in this small town of 24,000 was a sign of who he was and where he was going in life—forward.   Running forward by a home filled with the lost boys was his only mistake on the day which he could not have possibly envisioned.  One saw Christopher jog by and said the others, “There’s our target.”  They proceeded to follow Lane in a car and shot him in the back before driving off.   He staggered for a few feet and collapsed.
The same boy told police, “We were bored and didn’t have anything to do so we decided to kill somebody.”  The motive? For the fun of it.  Young boys can only think like this in a vacuum of moral beliefs that is not being supplied by the one person in society responsible for the shaping of boys—a father.  Boys who experience healthy doses of acceptance, affirmation, authority, and accountability from a father are less likely to develop in such a compartmentalized way emotionally.  Good old time, talk, and healthy touch from dads goes a long way to form souls of young boys who grow into emotionally healthy men—ones able to consider others first.
Everybody gets that.
On the local level, the guys who really get it are law enforcement officers.  If you don’t believe me, talk to them. They see broken families, no fathers, lost boys, no models, no mentors, and the detached pain-makers making news and being arrested daily.  They see boys being weaponized into heartless destroyers at multiple levels in the home and community.  If they had one wish it would be for leadership development among dads (young and old) raising the next generation.  These men and this movement are waiting out there to be awakened.  It’s the Sleeping Giant and it must rise or else promising young men like Christopher Lane and countless others will fall victim to the Lost Boys looking to have some fun.

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Every Man Ministries, founded by president Kenny Luck, gives men the tools they need to walk with God and navigate the difficulties of life. As the men’s pastor at Saddleback Church, Kenny Luck created a program for men to start and lead their own men’s ministries, the Sleeping Giant program. Watch Kenny’s teachings atEveryManMinistries.com.
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TOKOH MISI: THE CAMBRIDGE SEVEN

TOKOH MISI: THE CAMBRIDGE SEVEN

Saya pernah berkhotbah dalam sebuah ibadah dengan menggunakan The Cambridge Seven sebagai teladan iman. Pria-pria ini telah melayani generasi mereka, dan kini giliran kita untuk melayani generasi kita. Alkitab dengan jelas menyatakan bahwa Tuhan menjaga hidup orang-orang yang melayani generasinya. Daud adalah contoh yang sangat baik dalam hal ini. "Sebab Daud melakukan kehendak Allah pada zamannya, lalu ia mangkat dan dibaringkan di samping nenek moyangnya, dan ia memang diserahkan kepada kebinasaan." (Kisah Para Rasul 13:36)

Daud melayani generasinya dan ia dikenal sebagai seseorang yang berkenan kepada Allah (Kisah Para Rasul 13:22). Pada ayat yang sama, Alkitab menyatakan bahwa "[Daud adalah orang] yang melakukan segala kehendak-Ku". Meskipun Daud juga melakukan banyak kesalahan, ia tetaplah seorang hamba Allah yang setia.

Memandang ke tahun 1800-an, jarang sekali ada kisah kepahlawanan yang berasal dari hamba-hamba Tuhan. Namun, pada tahun 1881, Harold Schofield, seorang dokter muda sekaligus seorang misionaris yang melayani di bagian utara provinsi Shansi sedang terbaring lemah karena menderita sakit tifus. Dalam pembaringannya, ia tetap tidak berhenti berdoa. Ia memohon kepada Allah untuk memberinya seorang pengganti karena ia tahu bahwa ia tidak akan sembuh dari penyakitnya ini. Ia berdoa agar Tuhan mau mengirim lulusan dari universitas terbaik di Inggris untuk menginjili China. Pada tanggal 1 Agustus 1883, Harold Schofield berpulang ke rumah Bapa, saat itu saudara kita yang terkasih ini baru berumur 31 tahun.

Apakah Tuhan menjawab doanya? Ya! Pada bulan Februari 1885, doa Schofield terjawab ketika tujuh mahasiswa dari Universitas Cambridge memutuskan untuk meninggalkan kekayaan dan segala kebanggaan mereka dan melayani Tuhan ke mana pun Ia akan memimpin mereka. Ketujuh mahasiswa yang di kemudian hari dikenal sebagai "The Cambridge Seven" ini terdiri atas Charles Thomas Studd, Montagu Harry Proctor Beauchamp, Stanley P. Smith, Arthur T. Polhill-Turner, Dixon Edward Hoste, Cecil H. Polhill-Turner, dan William Wharton Cassels.

Pada ibadah pengutusan, mereka berkata, "Berdoalah supaya Tuhan menolong kami untuk tetap setia."

Ketujuh orang ini menjadi inspirasi bagi ribuan orang lainnya untuk memikirkan pelayanan misionaris secara lebih serius. Salah seorang dari tujuh orang ini adalah C.T. Studd, seorang kapten tim kriket Inggris yang terbaik pada masanya -- jika ia saja sanggup menyerahkan segala-galanya, orang lain pun dapat melakukannya! Mereka menginspirasi banyak orang untuk melayani Tuhan. Pada tahun 1890, jumlah mereka berlipat ganda, dan pada tahun 1900 terdapat 800 orang misionaris yang aktif melayani di China bersama-sama dengan China Inland Mission. Jumlah tersebut mewakili sepertiga dari total kekuatan misi yang melayani dunia pada saat itu.

Di bawah ini adalah sekelumit detail atas apa yang terjadi pada anggota The Cambridge Seven.

William Wharton Cassels (1858 -- 1925)
William melayani di China selama sepuluh tahun, kemudian ia kembali ke Inggris pada tahun 1885. Di Inggris, ia ditahbiskan sebagai uskup atas keuskupan baru untuk China Barat. Setelah ditahbiskan, ia kembali ke China Barat dan melayani di sana sampai ia meninggal pada tahun 1925.

Stanley Peregrine Smith (1861 -- 1931)
Stanley diutus untuk melayani di China Utara. Ia mempelajari bahasa China dan segera menjadi seorang pengkhotbah yang sangat fasih dalam bahasa asing tersebut. Ia meninggal di China pada 31 Januari 1931.

Charles Thomas Studd (1860 -- 1931)
Atlet kriket ini dipulangkan pada tahun 1894 karena kesehatannya yang semakin menurun. Di kemudian hari, ia melayani di India dan Afrika; ia juga mendirikan badan misi WEC. Ia meninggal di Ibambi, Kongo Belgia pada tahun 1931.

C. T. Studd adalah seseorang yang menulis kutipan terkenal berikut ini, "Beberapa orang ingin tinggal di tempat-tempat mereka dapat mendengar suara lonceng gereja; sedangkan aku ingin sekali membuka pos keselamatan sedekat mungkin dengan neraka." Pada masa tuanya, orang-orang yang mengkritiknya mengatakan bahwa ia harus pulang dan pensiun. Menanggapi hal itu, Studd menolak dan berkata, "Tuhan telah memanggilku untuk pergi melayani karena itu aku akan pergi. Aku akan membuka jalan menuju kuburanku dengan menjadi batu loncatan supaya orang-orang muda dapat mengikuti teladanku."

Cecil Polhill-Turner (1860 -- 1938)
Cecil melayani tuhan di Barat Laut China dan juga Tibet. Ia dan istrinya hampir terbunuh dalam kerusuhan pada tahun 1892. Pada tahun 1900, kesehatannya memburuk sehingga ia harus dipulangkan ke Inggris. Ia melakukan tujuh kunjungan misi yang panjang. Pada tahun 1908, ia menjadi pemimpin bagi Pentecostal Missionary Union di Sunderland dan berkarya secara luar biasa dalam pembentukan Pentecostal Movement di Inggris Raya.

Arthur Polhill-Turner (1862 -- 1935)
Arthur ditahbiskan menjadi pendeta pada tahun 1888. Ia pindah ke sebuah daerah padat penduduk supaya dapat bertemu dengan sebanyak mungkin orang. Ia tetap tinggal di China sekalipun muncul gerakan untuk mengusir orang-orang asing dan tetap di sana sampai tahun 1928, saat ia pensiun dan kembali ke Inggris. Ia meninggal pada tahun 1935.

Sir Montagu Harry Proctor Beauchamp (1860 -- 1939)
Pada tahun 1900, Montagu dievakuasi dari China karena adanya pemberontakan, tetapi ia kembali lagi ke China pada tahun 1902. Pada tahun 1911, ia kembali ke Inggris dan melayani sebagai pendeta bagi Angkatan Darat Inggris. Putranya menjadi misionaris generasi kedua di China. Karena itu, ia kembali lagi ke China pada tahun 1935. Montagu meninggal di pos misi puteranya pada tahun 1939.

Dixon Hoste (1861 -- 1946)
Dixon menjadi pengganti Hudson Taylor sebagai direktur bagi China Inland Mission dan selama 30 tahun, ia memimpin badan misi tersebut. Ia pensiun pada tahun 1935, tetapi tetap tinggal di China sampai tahun 1945 saat diasingkan oleh pasukan Jepang. Ia meninggal di London pada bulan Mei 1946, dan menjadi orang terakhir dari The Cambridge Seven yang meninggal.

Dixon pernah berkata, "Seseorang yang tidak belajar untuk menanti-nantikan Tuhan dan menyerahkan pikirannya untuk Dia bentuk, tidak akan pernah memiliki tujuan hidup yang mantap dan kepercayaan yang tenang kepada-Nya. Padahal, kedua hal itu sangat penting untuk dapat memberi pengaruh yang bijaksana terhadap orang lain pada masa-masa yang genting dan sulit."

Orang-orang yang setia ini telah melayani Tuhan bagi generasi mereka. Kesaksian mereka membuktikan bahwa kehidupan yang diserahkan sepenuhnya kepada Allah akan memampukan mereka untuk memberi dampak yang besar terhadap generasi mereka bagi Kerajaan Allah. Kiranya Tuhan membangkitkan orang-orang yang setia untuk melayani generasi kita saat ini. (t/Yudo)

Diterjemahkan dan disunting dari:
Nama situs: Faith Walk in the 2nd Half
Alamat URL: http://faith2ndhalf.blogspot.com/2010/08/cambridge-seven.html
Judul asli artikel: The Cambridge Seven
Penulis: Albert Kang
Tanggal akses: 20 Oktober 2013

Host a Halloween Party

By Jeremy Myers 4 Comments

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If you want to love your neighbors like Jesus, it often doesn’t take great acts of kindness or huge sacrifices on your part, but simply being open to seeing what their needs are, and willing to help out where you can. Sam Riviera gives some practical examples of how this has looked in his own life.

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Every year on Halloween, rather than go down to a local church for a “Hallelujah Party” or hide out in our house with our lights turned off, we host a big Halloween party for our entire neighborhood. This is another practical way we have shared the love of Jesus with our neighbors.
The day before Halloween we hand out quarter sheets of orange paper in the neighborhood, inviting neighbors to join us at dusk.
Here are some of the things we do:

Build A Fire In The Driveway

On Halloween night, we take our iron chiminea and put it on the driveway. Then we build a fire, put a circle of chairs around it, and hand out candy to the trick-or-treaters on the driveway.
We have also started to invite the neighbors to join us.
Last year, we put out a big pot of chili. And of course, chili needs cornbread to go with it. And since the night can be chilly, we put out hot cider and hot chocolate. While we’re at it, we make a few batches of our Secret Recipe Cookies.

Pumpkins, Cats, and Candy

We fill a large bowl with candy bars. Sometimes there is a neighbor who will not get home from work until later in the evening, and she gives us a package of candy to hand out for her. In addition to the circle of chairs, we set up tables to hold the food and carved pumpkins, fiber-optic pumpkin heads, and cats.
People start showing up just after dusk. We light the fire and people gravitate to the food tables and the chairs around the fire. Several neighbors bring their bowls of candy to hand out to trick-or-treaters on our driveway instead of at their houses. A few also bring food and drinks to share.
Some people stay all evening. Some only stay for a short while, eating a bowl of chili, and chatting with friends and neighbors. Others came by with their children, greet a neighbor or two, grab a cookie or cup of hot cider, and continue accompanying their children on their trick-or-treating rounds.

Tricking Our Neighbors?

Did we do this so we could invite people to a Bible study, church service, or give them Christian literature? – Never!
We do this so we can get to know our neighbors better, and so they can get to know each other better. We’re learning to love our neighbors like Jesus, and before we can do that, we have to get to know them.
And we do! Simply by spending time with, eating with them, and sharing life with them, we get to know them. Inevitably, we have conversations about life – including the meaning of life and its problems and where God is in all of that, hopes, needs and a variety of other issues. These all take place before, during, and after these events.

What A Great Neighborhood!

Do people want community? In our experience most people definitely do.
After last year’s Halloween party, several people at the Halloween party commented that their friends and relatives have said they wish they lived in our neighborhood, a neighborhood where people know each other and have neighborhood parties. One of our friends who does not live in the neighborhood commented this week “What a great neighborhood!”
People often say, “You need to go to church to be in community.” I say, “We are the church, in our community!”
We are the church as we get to know our neighbors, live in community with them, and show them the love of Jesus.

We are the church as we get to know our neighbors, live in community with them, and show them the love of Jesus.

We’re learning to love our neighbors and help them in places where they need help, in places where we are able to help. We’re helping build community, a community where people know each other and care about each other, a community where people talk about inconsequential things as well as about really important things, including Jesus.

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This "Getting to Know Our Neighbors" series is by Sam Riviera, a frequent blog contributor. This series provides concrete, practical suggestions for loving others like Jesus.

• Getting to Know Our Neighbors - Introduction
• 5 Ways to Break the Ice with Your Neighbors
• 7 Ways to Build Friendships with Your Neighbors - Part 1
• 7 Ways to Build Friendships with Your Neighbors - Part 2
• Using Group Events to Love Others
• 4 Pitfalls to Avoid when Getting to Know Your Neighbors
• Loving Neighbors Without an Agenda
• How to Host a Block Party for Your Neighbors
• Plumbers Needed
• Host a Halloween Party
• Host a New Year's Eve Party

If you have a question or comment about how Sam shows the love of Jesus to his neighbors, let him know in the comment section below. Maybe he will even write another post in the series!

Can Christians be Tree Huggers?

By Jeremy Myers 6 Comments

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Some Christians are wary of efforts to protect and preserve nature. I think that part of their concern is that some environmental efforts seem to make an idol out of nature, or even make nature more important than humans.
Here is an example of what I am talking about:
http://youtu.be/HaxLpjPZTbU
I believe there Christians are called to protect and tend the plants, trees, animals, water, and other elements of nature in this world, but you will never find me asking a tree if I can hug it or share my energy with it.
But here is the thing… just because we don’t want to go off the deep end and idolize nature or damage and destroy human lives for the sake of nature, this does not mean that we can ignore the environmental needs of the world or just consume and destroy the natural resources of this plant in any way we want.
One of the first instructions of God to humanity was that we would tend to the plants and animals of creation (Genesis 2:15f). Our fall into sin has not done away with this responsibility.
In fact, since the world and everything in it is God’s good creation, should not people who follow God be the greatest champions of the environment?

since the world and everything in it is God’s good creation, should not people who follow God be the greatest champions of the environment?

Yet all too often, we adopt the mentality that “it’s all going to burn away” so we might as well rape the land, kill the animals, and destroy the environment. (And by the way, I don’t think it all going to burn anyway… God will purify creation, but we are still going to be living in creation.  But that’s a subject for a future post.)
I am NOT saying that we need to worship the earth, treat animals as more important than humans, or pray to the sun and trees. No, this is idolatry. But there is a vast difference between idolatry and ignoring our God-given responsibility to tend for the earth, care for the animals, and do what we can to protect the earth and its resources for future generations.
So Christians can be tree huggers in the sense that we want to protect the environment God made. But first and foremost, we will be God lovers and people huggers who recognize that tending creation is one way to love both God and other people.
What are your thoughts on the subject? 

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This post is part of the September Synchroblog. Here is a list of other contributors:

• Jen Bradbury – Is God Green?
• Carol Kuniholm – For God So Loved the Earth
• David Derbyshire – Walking Through God’s Creation
• Glenn Hager – The Oblivious and the Extremist
• Oliver – Dieu il Recyclable 
• Tim Nichols – Never a Last Leaf
• Leah Sophia – September Synchroblog Creation