Starting Right
Starting Right is a 5 minute Day Starter to help keep you motivated, encouraged, and focused throughout your day. DannyMac is a pastor, teacher, motivational speaker, husband, and father. His years of leading and training people have given him vast experience in helping individuals to accomplish change in their lives and meet their goals. He can help you set the course for your day by offering practical advice from God's Word in a positive and fun way. There is no better way to begin your day than by Starting Right with DannyMac.
Starting Right
If I Were the Devil: Paul Harvey's Timeless Warnings and Today's Societal Challenges
In just one week the United States will elect their next President. What if our society's unravelling threads were predicted over half a century ago and they clearly describe one of the political parties? Join us today as we explore the hauntingly prescient words of radio journalist Paul Harvey and his 1960s commentary "If I Were the Devil." This episode uncovers how these observations, made decades ago, still ring true today, urging us to reflect on the societal shifts we've experienced. As we revisit Harvey's provocative insights, we find ourselves face-to-face with issues of moral decay, media influence, and the erosion of family values that continue to challenge us.
Amidst these pressing concerns, there's a beacon of hope grounded in timeless wisdom and spiritual faith. As we navigate these tumultuous topics, we turn to scripture for reassurance, discovering that true peace transcends daily chaos and worldly uncertainties. With verses from John and Philippians, I'm here to remind us that faith offers solace and strength, enabling us to face today's challenges with calm and resilience. Grab your coffee, find a comfy spot, and let's start our day with reflection, hope, and the promise of peace.
Good morning and welcome to Starting Right. I am Danny Mac and I'm going to be here every Monday to Friday to help you get a great start to your day. So grab your cup of coffee, sit back and relax for the next five minutes as I help you start your day by starting right. Good morning everyone, and welcome to Thursday. I'm so glad to have you with me today. Today, we want to do something a little bit different.
Speaker 1:I want to read an article from a man named Paul Harvey. I want to read an article from a man named Paul Harvey. Now, this was back in the early to mid-1960s. Paul Harvey was a radio journalist, and his most well-known segment was one called the Rest of the Story, in which he would tell a well-known story, but then he would add some new facts that people didn't know before. That gives the story even more significance. On occasion, he would also present his own commentary about social issues. In 1964, he wrote one of the most significant of those commentaries. That resonates today, probably even more than it did back in 1964. So remember now this is over 56 years ago.
Speaker 1:The commentary that Paul Harvey wrote was called If I Were the Devil If I were the devil, I would gain control over the most powerful nation in the world. I would delude their minds into thinking that they had come from man's effort instead of God's blessings. I would promote an attitude of loving things and using people instead of the other way around. I would dupe entire states into relying on gambling for their state revenue. I would convince people that character is not an issue when it comes to leadership. I would make it legal to take the life of unborn babies. I would make it socially acceptable to take one's own life and invent machines to make it convenient. I would cheapen human life as much as possible so that the life of animals are valued more than human beings. I would take God out of schools, where even the mention of his name was grounds for a lawsuit. I would come up with drugs that sedate the mind and target the young. I would get the sports heroes to advertise them. I would get control of the media so that every night I could pollute the mind of every family member for my agenda. I would attack the family, the backbone of any nation. I would make divorce acceptable and easy, even fashionable. If the family crumbles, so does the nation. I would compel people to express their most depraved fantasies on canvas and movie screens, and I would call it art. I would compel people to express their most depraved fantasies on canvas and movie screens, and I would call it art. I would convince the people that right and wrong are determined by a few who call themselves authorities and refer to their agenda as politically correct. I would persuade people that church is irrelevant and out of date and the Bible is for the naive. I would dull the minds of Christians and make them believe that prayer is not important and that faithfulness and obedience are optional.
Speaker 1:If I were the devil, I guess I would leave things pretty much the way they are. That sounds like it was written today as we hear it. We can react to it and we can get frightened. We go. Those things are happening around us and it can scare us. The good news is that, no matter what the enemy thinks he's able to accomplish, our God is still in control and, in the midst of everything, he is still able to give to us peace.
Speaker 1:John, chapter 14 and verse 27, says Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I don't give it to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. We are not going to find peace on the nightly news. We are not going to find peace from the politicians, from the leaders around us. We're going to find our peace that comes from God, and when we find peace we can go to find our peace that comes from God and when we find peace we can go through this knowing that we can trust Him.
Speaker 1:Philippians 4, verses 6 and 7, says Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. God has promised us that he will give us peace. There is a devil, he is real and he is working hard right now to tear people apart, to tear families apart, to destroy nations, to destroy faith in God. The devil is working to divide churches. He's working to divide people and families. Everything that the devil can do to try to destroy he's doing right now. But we've got a God who gives us peace and his direction, and he's with us every step of the way. Our faith, our hope is in him. So today, my friends, I want you to gather around with your family. Bring them together, bring them close together, love your family, pray together, take a hold of each family member and pray with them that God will give to them peace and wisdom and strength to face everything that we will go through over the next.
Speaker 1:While God cannot be beaten by COVID, god cannot be destroyed by politicians. The Bible cannot be wiped out by legislation. The truths of God cannot be destroyed by political correctness. When we come together and believe in his word, we find peace and strength where there is victory and power for all of us. Be bold, be strong. Have a great day, my friends. We'll talk tomorrow. Thank you for listening today and I invite you to join me Monday to Friday, right here on Starting Right with Danny Mac.
