If we had seen them coming, we would have locked the door.
They preen and pontificate;
some even sing while stalking,
stealing the souls of our children—
replacing those empty sockets with consumptive lies that bleed salvation,
spilling it on the floor to be trammeled and pummeled by devils,
to be laughed at by our enemy.
And
if we had seen them coming, we would have barred the door.
We were always so careful to keep out the predators.
There were threats to guard against;
there were bad guys outside the door.
Weren’t there?
But the child stealers were not just on FBI Wanted walls.
Some child stealers wear shirts and ties and business casual,
respected and admired with letters after their names,
oohed and ahhed,
as if their offerings are something other than poisoned Kool-Aid.
They came on the airwaves.
They Nooked and Kindled, hardbacked and paperbacked their way past the door.
They came in the blogosphere.
They came toting guitars and concert merch;
and the delectable dreams were more dangerous than we saw,
and the inviting ideas more corrosive than we knew.
If we had seen them coming . . .
Ominous work!
Thank you. Something close to my heart. Ideas have always had consequences, but those destructive ideas are far too easily accessible to our kids than they were even just a few years ago.
Yes, we’ve seen this firsthand, with five daughters and now six grandchildren — if we all made a list of issues that have arisen due to the Internet and all that goes with it, it’s mind-boggling—- mindblogging?
The new atheists, for one example, are having so much success because of their access to young minds.
Wow. Makes me think.
Access is good, but access also means that the world of ideas is out there to be discerned. We need to arm our kids.
We may not see them coming, but NOTHING surprises God and He is at work in all things. How do people without Him go through life? I am certain I would not make it without Him.
Absolutely. It is a warfare!
so true.. when I was growing up, we only had to be afraid of the stranger we could see.. I would not want to be raising children in the world we live in now.
The world of ideas was always something to guard against, but in earlier years you had to work at getting it in. Now ideas are everywhere, and discernment is needed to sort through the tangle!
Lilly,I read this twice because it is so profound. The predators are out there all right and locking the door is not enough anymore. We have to teach the kids to think for themselves and that makes parenting an even more difficult task today than it ever was. Great, thought provoking post. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks. I love the Internet, but sometimes I long for the simplicity of front porches, friendly mailmen, and good cherished books. It’s hard to keep up with the influence in this age.
We may be heading backward in that very direction -surely a very good thing.
You personally? Nice.
Hey Apron,
Excellent work and right to the point! Much to think of here and that is always a good thing. God Bless, SR
And you.
wow! excellent. you put things differently, i’d say… may i come back to read this over and over again?
hope things are doin’ well, your side of town… regards! 
Thanks a lot!
Reblogged this on Apronhead and commented:
Add your thoughts here… (optional)
Very powerful. I often think about things like this and the way technology has taken over in so many ways, especially when I think of raising kids. We don’t have children yet, but I worry about how to deal with all this once we do have them…
As always, things can be used for good or bad. There are those who want our minds and hearts, and especially those of our kids. The tools they have at their disposal makes that threat more ominous.
Made me feel very chilly inside. It’s so true bad things come packaged in a different way now.
Yes, and our global-reaching kids are just as naive as we were.
Knowing what your kids and grandkids are doing and where they are has always been our jobs. Whether it be from the wild animals, savages, wars, weather, and now the internet. The source can be blocked to protect them on the homefront but we also need to give them skills to protect themselves from others who have unlimited access to all manner of good, bad and evil. A big job.
This is an excellent reminder, thank you Lilly for profound words.
Sadly, the influence is still toxic even when they are no longer under our roof. But we can only do as much as we can . . . and pray.
Unfortunately, yes. Of late the toxic mood has prevailed everywhere. A sad time for all, a dangerous time for our children. ;(