“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money (Matthew 6:24 NIV).”

–Jesus

Do you ever allow your thoughts to drift back to the days when life seemed so much simpler? When families dined together, neighbors were actually neighborly, screens were what kept bugs from getting inside the house, and friends were people, not numbers accumulated on a social media account? I do.

I’m old enough to remember when kids played outdoors, inventing games or playing ball–anything to get out of the house, where we might be tasked with chores our parents concocted for us. The one screen we did have, a television topped with aluminum foil-clad rabbit ears (okay, I’ve already lost some of you!), was tuned to Fury, My Friend Flicka, and Sky King on Saturday mornings, and Ed Sullivan and Bonanza on Sunday nights. Back then, we couldn’t fall asleep late at night with the TV on, as programming ended at the appointed hour with the playing of the Star Spangled Banner.

Oh, how times have changed! While we might pine for those simpler days, they’re gone. The past is past, and little did we know that it would be prologue to a much different world personally, nationally, and globally.

A recent WSJ article reported the findings of a survey conducted by the University of Chicago’s NORC, an independent, nonpartisan research organization. The results from over one thousand respondents were pretty discouraging. Thirty-eight percent said patriotism was very important to them, while 39% said religion was very important. That’s down from 70% and 62%, respectively, from twenty-five years ago.

American exceptionalism, or the belief that America ranks higher than other countries throughout the world, polled at only 21%. Tolerance for others as a very important value dropped from 80% to 58% … in just four years.

Only 23% of adults under age 30 said that having children was very important. With such a world view, is that really a surprise? Why would they want to bring a child into a world they view so pessimistically?

The seminal question is why? Why such a dispirited view of our life in America? The article suggested several possibilities: The September 11, 2001 attacks on our country, the 2008 financial crisis, Covid, and political divisiveness, to name a few. While these events have impacted our lives, I believe the answer is much more fundamental and related to what drove America’s birth.

We all know our country was founded out of a yearning for new life, freedom from tyranny, and the opportunity to chase happiness. The vaunted pursuit of those values was predicated on a belief in God and His divine providence and protection. The two are synergistic, as neither is as strong when the other is absent.

Friends, in large measure we’ve lost that belief in, and dependence on, God. Not everyone, to be sure, but a significant percentage of the populace now places little value on corporate worship, prayer, and outward expressions of faith.

When polled, one gentleman–only 33 years of age–suggested that patriotism is declining as individualism (a euphemism for self-centeredness) rises, resulting in a sense of entitlement and a turning from community involvement. I think he’s on to something. When we think we don’t need our community, or believe we can manage our lives without divine intervention, we’re sorely missing the mark.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the only priority that increased in importance over the past twenty-five years was, you guessed it, money. It grew from 31% in 1998 to 43% now. Frankly, I’m surprised it didn’t poll higher. The above verse from Matthew’s Gospel, taken from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, tells us we “can’t serve both God and Money.” Money, to be sure, but one could substitute pride, material possessions, power, or any number of other false idols.

While we can’t go back in time to a simpler life, hopefully, the “values pendulum” will swing back in favor of those beliefs and principles that were much more prevalent then than they are now. It can happen, but we have to devalue selfishness, embrace community, and put our trust in a Power much higher and stronger than ourselves.