Years ago I read of a sawmill owner in a small village in the 19th century. The sawyer was an atheist who ran his sawmill, located not far from the village church, seven days a week. To get to the church, the villagers had to pass by the mill as it loudly operated on the Lord's Day. Activity didn't cease as church members passed by - with one exception.
As a certain elderly gentleman approached the mill, the owner would shut down operation, remove his hat, and stand silently as the old man passed by. Once the object of his strange reverence had passed, the mill owner fired up operation again and continued his work.
One day a fellow villager asked the sawyer why he stopped operation for this one church member as he was passing. The old atheist replied, "Because he's the only member of that church who really practices what you all say you believe." What an indictment.
We live in an evil age. Conduct that would have been condemned a mere twenty-five years ago is now widespread, open, and rampant, parading in the streets in all its degeneracy. Each year the month of June is declared "Pride Month," where people are encouraged to celebrate their deviancy.
Crime and lawlessness are rampant. Every weekend it seems large cities turn into open-air shooting galleries where increasing numbers of people are killed and wounded. Gangs of thieves descend upon stores like locusts and steal with impunity. Violent criminals are slapped on the wrist and turned loose to continue their reigns of terror upon the rest of the citizenry. Justice in America is often perverted on the basis of one's race or political persuasion. I could go on, but you get the picture.
Worst of all is the state of the Christian Church in America. Rocked by scandals in every denomination the Church has lost its moral influence. Having abandoned the authority of the Bible, we have embraced the spirit of the age and done our part in accelerating the moral and spiritual rot of a once great nation. It is no surprise that we are ignored since the vast majority of professing Christians do not truly practice what we say we believe. We have earned the scorn and increased hostility of the world around us. The Church in America has a form of godliness but denies the power of the Gospel by the conduct of our lives.
Bottom Line: We do not love God.
What can we do? What we should have been doing all along: search our hearts honestly, repent of our sins genuinely, and pursue godliness and holiness sincerely in our own personal lives. At this stage we may not be able to stop the collapse of our society, but it will prepare us to face what comes afterward.