“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.” – Hebrews 2:1

The cultural dynamics of our times threaten the survival of values and family structure. This fact vividly brings to mind a lesson I learned in my youth in Kangundo, Kenya. The mud house I grew up in was constructed when I was about seven or eight years old. Holes were dug in pre-marked areas, poles were placed in them, and then logs were nailed onto them, connecting the poles. The builders then put stones in the spaces between poles before thatching the structure with mud.

Sometimes, if it was raining or I was in a hurry, when my mother asked me to fetch firewood for cooking, I would go to the least visible side of the house and remove a log instead of going to the forest to find firewood. I did this until my father noticed that the house had holes and demanded that we, including my innocent mother, plug the holes and re-thatch it that very day.

Scriptural values and the acknowledgment of our Creator have held cultures together and helped people to have a clear conscience toward themselves, their fellow human beings, and God. These values are usually tested one at a time and their testing may be brought about by what some people refer to as “enlightenment.” However, just like the logs I removed, one log at a time, there are consequences we cannot avoid once the spiritual values have been removed. Each log in our home was a source of strength, and each one removed made it weaker. Eventually, if my habit had continued, our home would have collapsed. Likewise, if people make continual concessions in their values, the culture will decline until it collapses.

Our choices, in the long run, could hurt not only ourselves, but also those we care about. Before we move forward with altering practices that seem harmless at the present time, let us evaluate their spiritual implications and the impact on our families and Biblical principles.

Let us pay close and earnest attention to the things we know to be true. If we do not, before we realize it, we will be living with an unstable spiritual structure.