Gabe is currently serving the Lord in the vocational training department of Salem4Youth Ranch as a wood working instructor. He has been involved in ministering to young people since he was a teenager – mentoring, teaching, church ministry, camps, retreats, and residential ministry. Gabe attended Lincoln Christian University and Columbia International University, graduating from CIU in 2002 with majors in both Bible and Youth Ministry. He and his wife, Nikki (also a graduate of LCU and ISU with degrees in Jr. High Education and Bible), are busy with 3 children in gradeschool, jr. high, and high school. Gabe is an avid fly fisherman and enjoys spending time outdoors with his family as often as possible.
“But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise.” ~ Psalm 79:13
Pew Research released the results from a survey October 2017. The title of the article was “Good without God? More Americans say Amen to that.”
Religion News Service said “For the first time, a majority of Americans – 56 percent – say it is possible to be a good person without a religious belief. So says new Pew Research Center data drawn from two polls conducted among about 5,000 American adults in June and July.”
“God is not a prerequisite for good values and morality,” Greg Smith, Pew’s associate director of research, said in a post about the findings.”
Here is the shocker to me with the findings. “In the current poll, Protestants and Catholics were also polled, and 45 percent of them agree that God is not necessary for personal morality.”
Now, either Pew Research has a very liberal interpretation of “Protestant” or as Scripture tells us many who think they are Christians are not “born again” believers. Matthew 7:20-23 and Matthew 7:13-14
Parents, the battle for your son’s heart and mind is in full swing. When we read such an article as this it should remind us, as parents, that if we are not out to intentionally teach or to indoctrinate our children with the full 
council and truth about God and themselves then eventually they will be persuaded that there is no God, and therefore suffer the consequence of having no hope of tomorrow.
The world loves to teach that we should leave faith and religion up for our children to figure out. Yet as the world continues to beat us down day after day to stop indoctrinating, or purposely teaching our children about God, they are fast at work doing that very thing. They are busy indoctrinating and teaching our children that there is no God.
And as hypocritical as that is, make no mistake, the result of such teaching by the world has been, and still is, devastating on all current and future generations. The further from the truth about God and where moral rightness really comes from we get, then the stronger and more destructive the world and daily life become.
Parents, without God, no man is righteous, nor can any man be righteous. Righteousness, in simple terms, is defined as moral rightness. It is only by the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary that we can be righteous. Christ, who was sent by God the Father for the redemption
and forgiveness of sins for His chosen people.
It is the blood of Christ (His death burial and resurrection) and God’s grace to believe that makes us righteous (morally right) in the eyes of God. The Bible is clear on this. And the world is clear on its purpose.
So I encourage you to bring up your child in the love and admonition of the Lord. He (God Almighty) can change the hearts of teenagers and forever save their souls. The Lord can also change the hearts of us as parents as well.
The world will not stop its assault on the Righteousness of God. It will not give up its control on moral behavior nor its desire to destroy your son. So it is up to you to purposely teach your children. Don’t be slack. Ask God for grace and mercy to help you and then rest assured He will.
Till next time,
For His glory not ours,
Terry Benge
Executive Director
Salem4Youth Ministries
Parents Pasture 