" 'The days are coming,' declares the Sovereign Lord, 'when I will send famine through the land - not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.  12) Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.' " ... Amos 8:11-12 ...... Let me start by saying the word 'eclecticism,' or 'eclectic' is way above my mental pay grade. .. So then why bring it up at all, you idiot?! .. I'm so glad you asked! .. I first discovered it in the story from this headline from Fox News on May 1st -- "Millennial Generation Abandoning Christianity  Because it is 'Too Judgmental' "  ... In the subsequent news story, the word 'eclectic' was used to describe the millennial generation's preferred approach to life. .. OK, so what is that? .. After struggling through several lengthy & labored cerebral narratives, what I finally discovered that even I could understand was that it came down to them being able to 'pick & choose' what works or 'feels right' in their choices as to how they want to live. .. Needless to say, my limited mind went nuts! ..  This explains everything in such a simplistic way! .. Think about it for just a moment! .. We read daily about how our college campuses are increasingly catering to the 'sensitivities' of their youthful audience. .. Cry rooms, play-doh, coloring books, thumb-sucking ... you name it, they've come up with what they think are the perfect solutions to this ever-increasing mental dilemma .. the inability to cope with the real world. .. Sadly, for those of us who have lived beyond this period in our lives, we've come to realize that this is a complete distortion to what lies ahead for these precious young lives when they soon enter 'the real world.' .. Simply, the 'eclectic' approach, or 'picking & choosing,' is all fine & good if shopping for clothing or pastry, but when it comes to issues that bear lifelong consequences, it's not always an option. .. The example I will use is today's Church (I'm sure you're shocked). .. I will use a personal experience to illustrate my point. .. A couple of year's back, I was attending a thriving Church that was basically 'on fire' for God. .. The leadership did its very best to follow 'all' the teachings of scripture & to reach out to the lost in an honest & straight-forward approach. .. I so looked forward to every opportunity to serve there. .. But then, something changed. .. The senior leadership team went to a Church conference somewhere down south & when they returned, things began to change in a rapid & dramatic way. .. Teaching went from verse-by-verse to topical subjects .. consequence-judgement preaching all but disappeared .. even "Universalism' in the form of 'Velvet Elvis' became the teaching guideline for the small group gatherings. .. Needless to say, I met several times with leadership and the general thought pattern used in this major change was 'to become more relevant' for today's world. .. In other words, they decided to go with the 'eclectic' approach to Church - to pick & choose what they decided was right for their target audience. .. Needless to say, this meant leaving out huge swaths of the Bible so as NOT to offend  or chase away the modern 'eclectic' mind-set. .. Wow! .. How dangerous! .. As usual, I fled the scene. .. And sadly, I am still struggling to find 'that place' where the Bible, all 66 books, are the main focus, & that the true reality is that yes, there are many wonderful & joyful teachings that are desperately needed in today's increasingly dark world. .. But also, there are consequences for lifestyles that fall short of Christ's teachings. .. Yes, there is a Heaven .. but .. there also is a Hell! .. The devil & his minions are real & they are out there to conquer those who lack a complete foundation in ALL the teachings of the ENTIRE Bible!  .. Matthew 7:13-14 says this, .. "Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  14) But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." ... How dare me! .. I just used a very 'judgmental' teaching! .. Most likely, this verse will be missing from most all pulpits today. .. No, it's not popular, but it is necessary. .. Simply, the 'eclectic' approach to scripture is not an option. .. In closing, I pray that each of you would take a few moments of your time to read about the 7th Church in Revelation 3:14-22. .. Briefly, it is Jesus' teaching concerning the 'lukewarm' condition of the last Church on earth just prior to His triumphant return. .. He spells it out quite clearly .. that those who are just 'lukewarm' about their walk with Him .. He said He would 'spit them out of his mouth'! .. Simply, Jesus is NOT interested in a half-hearted walk with Him. .. You either are, or you're not. .. You are either in, or you are out .. and that means all of it, not just the 'eclectic' choices some have decide to choose. .. Our eternal destination depends on us choosing ALL of His teachings! .. 'Eclecticism' in this case is NOT an option! Time is short! .. Don't put off the most important thing facing you today, and that is accepting, and then living the life Jesus outlined for us in His teachings. .. And try your best to find a fellowship of believers who are after these same things. .. The 'remnant' is getting smaller & smaller, at least around here, but there are some of us out there. .. Praying for each of you to stay strong, even as the opposition increases in these final moments of the Church Age. ...... Until next time, Red