Are we using our God-given Common Sense?
One of our New Years resolutions was to choose a specific section of the house and thoroughly clean and organize it. As a homeschool family we have collected lots of craft projects & books and saved everything we ever made. Hence the cleaning and organizing. Time to weed through everything and see what needs to stay and what doesn't and find a spot for the things that are staying =}We are currently trying to clean and organize our library. Since both my sister and I are now graduated we thought it might be time to put some of the K-6th grade school books away. Not all of our school books are ready to go back into boxes as we still enjoy refering back to them, but some of them we are ready to let go and save for our own kids. The extra room we now have is being filled rapidly by books we (specifically my wonderful mom) have saved/collected till we were old enough to enjoy them. For example, we have lots of political, economic, theological, doctrinal and other fascinating books that I am finally starting to appreciate :]
Our family computer is in the library and it is currently surrounded by old articles, brochures, books, homeschool magazines and lots of other memorable items that we are trying to organize and this was where I was sitting as I thought about what to submit for my next post. I sat here with fingers twitching and saw this article sitting next to the computer. It is titled "Obituary Of An Old Friend." This article was printed in a brochure called "Scoopified" in an Autumn 2007 issue. (Not sure why we have it or where it came from.) I read it and found something I wanted to share with you. Hopefully it will encourage us to revive our "Old Friend" in our nation.
"Obituary Of An Old Friend
We are mourning the loss of a beloved old friend who recently passed away. His name was Common Sense. Common Sense lived a long life but died in the United States from a vicious contagious disease.
He selflessly devoted his life to service in schools, hospitals, homes and factories, helping folks get the jobs done without fanfare and foolishness. For decades, petty rules, frivolous lawsuits, and ludicrous verdicts had no power over Common Sense.
He was credited with cultivating such valued lessons as to know when to come in out from the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, and that life isn't always fair. Common Sense lived by a simple and sound financial policy: Don't spend more than you earn. Common Sense also lived by other time-tested strategies like: The adults are in charge and not the kids and it's okay to come in second or third.
A veteran of the Great Depression and the Technological Revolution, Common Sense survived cultural and educational trends such as body peircing, "whole language" and "new math". But his health declined when he became infected with the "I'm not responsible for my own actions", and "It's alright if it feels good" viruses. He watched in pain as good people became ruled by self-seeking lawyers. His health rapidly deteriorated when schools endlessly implemented zero-tolerance policies. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, and a teacher fired for repremanding an unruly student only worsened his condition.
It declined further when schools had to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student, but could not inform the parents and get their permission when their children were given mind altering drugs or birth control pills; and when universities turned into cesspools of debauchery and socialist propaganda.
Common Sense lost his will to live when criminals received better treatment then their victims, the Ten Commandments became contraband, and priests molested young boys. When a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee is hot, and was awareded a huge settlement; and when the president sold security related technology to a hostile nation, Common Sense fell into a coma.
As the end neared, Common Sense drifted in and out of consciousness, but was kept informed of new questionable regulations such as thought control and partial birth abortion. Finally, when another president, claiming to steadfastly protect the country from terrorists atrocities, yet simultaneously allowing the same villains to invade the country through borders and ports of entry that are - as if by design - inexplicably easily violated; being fully aware of what the grave consequences of such contempt by the chieft executive for the nation's security can be, Common Sense died of sudden cardiac arrest.
Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Love; his daughter, Responsibility; and his sons, Diligence and Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers, Deception, Greed and Ignorance. Not many attended his funeral because so few noticed he was gone."
Common Sense is a rarity nowadays and is something to be prized. It is not something that is being taught to the upcoming generation and it is something that is critical if our country is to survive. Common Sense is usually very obvious, but in todays society with our warped media, schools and other indoctrination outlets, it is sometimes not even mentioned because "It doesn't feel good or seem right or is not tolerant."
God gave us minds and He wants us to use them. By ignoring the obvious is not using our God-given common sense. Often times common sense goes hand in hand with God's commands. For example, as was mentioned above, parents are (and should be) in charge. God has given them the responsibility to take care of their children, train them up "in the way they should go" and discipline them when necessary. Just as God does with us.
Common Sense needs to be taught in this wonderful country of ours. It needs to be revived and be a part of our everyday lives!
