"O, Precious Lord!"

"While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof." (S.O.S. 1:12)

  Please forgive my boldness, but it is only fitting to say it straight, and say it loud enough for it to be heard! If you have been watching, there is a movement afoot to tear down the monuments and signs that have been placed there by past generations; some of which have been examples of lives given to the cause of freedom and the right to worship openly and without restraint.
  I guess if you have not had much opposition to how you worship, you cannot really understand what it is like to feel restraint, or what it might feel like to hide what you believe and be afraid to speak the truth. There is something here in this verse that is addressing the principles and the wherewithal of what goes into the fight for truth; for taking a stand for what you know to be right.
 The difference between those that make a sacrifice and those that do not, is in what the believe and how much what they believe means, whether or not it is critical enough to protect it. This is really not about our personal opinions; this is about our children and where the world takes them!
 There is a particular book that has been banned from schools, besides the Bible; it is a book that I had to read to get my diploma, called, "The Catcher in the Rye," which was very controversial, to say the least. This is not an endorsement for the book, but there was one particular theme which causes me to to wonder why it is banned from public education; this is the fact that our children are being led into destruction.
  There are two roads that Jesus spoke about, as two roads to travel; one leads to life eternal, while the other leads to destruction. The one that leads to life is narrow; while the one that leads to destruction is wide. Can you see any sort of connection? If you don't, it is probably not your fault, so don't let it ruin your day. But if you do see it happening, then how does that make you feel?
  This is what I believe that this verse is speaking of, whether or not we are willing to listen. How much do you love Him, and is your love for Him making enough aroma to cause a stink! The "table" is nothing more than His surroundings, which pretty much means all that He is about. The fragrance that we wear, whatever brand that might be, needs to send forth that smell which matches all that surrounds Him; that which pleases Him; that which is in fellowship, if you will, while sitting at His table!
  Never mind what else the world is doing or how crazy the world might become; because if you are following the Bible, this is nothing compared to what is to come. But, when it comes to where we stand on the truth, we had better make sure whatever we are standing on is the Word of God, and only the Word of God! If it doesn't match the smell, don't take it in...

"Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. The know God's justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too." (Romans 1:28-32) NLT