One of the requirements that we have for this class is to complete 1,500 pages of reading on a selection of books on the subject of marriage and family. The first book that Jenny and I chose to read was Ten Secrets for a Successful Family by Adrian Rogers. This is a wonderful and powerful book that looks to the Ten Commandments to give us a guide to build our family foundations upon. Let me give you a word of warning IT IS VERY CONVICTING! I recommend this book even if you do not have a family, or your family is already grown and gone. Personally it gave me a fresh new look at the importance of the Ten Commandments.

I said all of this to give you a powerful quote that I found in this book. It is from ABC News’s Ted Koppel in his address to the graduating class of Duke University. Here is a portion of what he said: (p. 94)

“In the place of truth we have discovered facts; for moral absolutes, we have substituted moral ambiguity. We now communicate with everyone and say absolutely nothing. We have reconstructed the Tower of Babel and it is a television antenna, a thousand voices producing a daily parody of democracy in which everyone’s opinion is afforded equal weight regardless of substance or merit. Indeed, it can even be argued that opinions of real weight tend to sink with barely a trace in television’s ocean of banalities…What Moses brought from Mount Sinai were not Ten Suggestions; they are Commandments. Are, not were. The sheer beauty of the Commandments is that they codify in a handful of words acceptable human behavior, not just for then or now, but for all time.�

Wow! I am not sure if Ted is a Christian, but what a powerfully true statement. As Christians we have allowed the culture to water down the Ten Commandments, and we have no one to blame but ourselves. We can cast the blame upon the media, universities, or the government. However, in the end we must face ourselves in the mirror and ask ourselves how faithful have we been to follow them. We get mad when a judge tells us that we have to remove them from federal property, but how many of us even have them in our houses?

I hope that this post has caused you to reflect a little upon the attitude that you have toward the Commandments yourself. I challenge you to read them again, and to look at each one of them and ask the Lord if you have failed Him in anyway toward that commandment. May we all build our lives upon the Ten Commandments that will remain true for all time! May God bless you in your efforts!