God-Fearing

Proverbs 1 really lays out some of the premises that will be explored in the rest of the book; primarily the importance of fearing God, or having reverence for Him, and applying His truth:
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.
8 My son, hear the instruction of your father, And do not forsake the law of your mother;
9 For they will be a graceful ornament on your head, And chains about your neck.

I'll share a bit later about an actor who described himself recently as "God-fearing."  And, that is a state to which all of us should really aspire - allowing ourselves to be controlled by the Spirit of God and abiding by the teaching that we have received.  It may or may have not been from godly parents or grandparents.  But, right principles implanted in our hearts can serve us well.  And, we can be inspired to be parents who teach the ways of the Lord to the generations to come.

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The 111th Psalm shares insight into God's redemption that has been made available to us and how we can respond to who He is and what He offers to us:
7 The works of His hands are verity and justice; All His precepts are sure.
8 They stand fast forever and ever, And are done in truth and uprightness.
9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.
A well-known, Academy Award-winning actor was back in his hometown recently, and made an indelible impression on a lady there.  CBN News reports that Denzel Washington was looking for a barbeque restaurant and, as the story states:

The actor started talking to a group of bystanders when one of them told him about an 86-year-old woman living nearby who has been a big fan of Washington's for many years. In a impulsive, random act of kindness, Washington stopped what he was doing and headed to the elderly woman's home to pay her a visit.

When Washington got to her home, she was stunned and overjoyed and said, "Dear God, my blessing has been answered," according to ABC7 The woman held the movie star's hand throughout the visit and beamed, "I'm not going to let you go!"

This visit attracted attention, with one of the onlookers making this statement: "We look up to you. You're a black statesman..." But, CBN reports that "Washington responded with humility, referring to himself as 'regular folk.'" He is quoted as saying, "I'm a God-fearing man who was raised right," he told the group of fans. "I did a lot of wrong. But I got it together."

The event has been posted to YouTube.

This is not an isolated incident with the famous actor sharing his faith.  A Crosswalk.com story from last week reports on comments that Washington made in an interview regarding the Millennial generation.  The story says, according to The Christian Post:  "I would say to your generation — find a way to work together because this is a very divisive, angry time you're living in, unfortunately, because we didn't grow up like that..." The article also says:

Washington also encouraged young people to refrain from becoming addicted to social media, but when they use it, to do so to share God’s Word.

"I pray for your generation," he said. "What an opportunity you have! Don't be depressed by it because we have to go through this, we're here now. You can't put that thing back in the box."

The story offers a corollary to that quote from the visit with the 86-year-old lady in Chicago, in which he said: "I did a lot of wrong. But I got it together."  He said:

"My mother said to me when I was 59, she said, 'Denzel, you do a lot of good. You have to do good the right way and you know what I'm talking about,'" he concluded. "I don't drink anymore, I don't do any of those things. I'm all about the message, to the degree that I know it, and I'm unashamed and unafraid to share it! So you have to be unafraid and unashamed to share it in the way your millennial generation know's how.”

I really want to camp out on two statements.  For one thing, Denzel stated, "I'm a God-fearing man who was raised right."  He was challenged by his mom when he was 59 - he turns 63 on Christmas Eve.  That wasn't too long ago.  So, we recognize that our upbringing can determine the course of our lives.  We can turn aside from the way we were raised; those brought up in a Christian home can grow to reject it and those who did not see faith modeled can actually become people of strong faith. But, we also realize that there is power in the Word of God, and if those principles were part of a person's background, then we can trust that the Word will not return void and that a child trained in, as Proverbs says, "the way he should go" will not depart from it.  Surely, a person can choose to reject it, but the truth is a powerful force.

Washington also touches on the element of repentance.  He basically admits from departing from those principles which were planted within him - but, as He said, "I got it together."  I don't know what that entails, but it sounds to me that he is attempting to live his life in a manner that lines up with his stated faith, the state of being "God-fearing."  The Bible says that the "fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."  We should all strive to not only say that we think highly of God or give lip-service to His principles, but to truly be permeated with the fear, the reverence of Him.  Our willingness to allow His ways to supersede our own will determine how His nature is expressed through us and how we live the life He intends for us to live.   A true encounter with Almighty God and the realization of His goodness will lead us to repentance.