Which Direction Is US Heading? Toward Sodom Or Repentance? Its An Age Old Question

NATION GONE PROGRESSIVE? DON'T COUNT ON IT, AUTHOR SAYS

'Factor in the God factor: God can turn the tide overnight in America'

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By Paul Bremmer

For Americans who oppose “same-sex marriage,” it can be hard to look at the future with much optimism. After all, the Supreme Court overturned the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013 and two years later ruled same-sex marriage is a constitutional right.

What’s more, same-sex marriage is more popular in the younger generation, with Pew Research Center finding 70 percent of millennials support same-sex marriage, including 58 percent of millennial Republicans.

But Michael Brown, an author, talk-radio host and president of FIRE School of Ministry, says traditional marriage advocates should not lose hope, because America has been in similar situations before.

In April 1966, the cover of Time magazine asked: “Is God Dead?” It was in the midst of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s, when many young Americans rebelled against the traditional values of their parents.

But only five years later, in June 1971, another Time cover teased a story on “The Jesus Revolution.” A spiritual movement had risen up among the rebellious young generation, with many of the hippies and druggies becoming born-again Christians.

Brown, who was one of those young born-again Christians, believes it shows the power of God to effect societal change.

“Factor in the God factor: God can turn the tide overnight in America,” he said.

If God could raise a spiritual revival out of a group of secular, rebellious young people, asks Brown, then why can’t He turn the tide against “gay marriage”? Brown urges Americans to never count God out. The seventh principle in his new book,  “Outlasting the Gay Revolution,” is “Factor in the God factor.”

The "God factor" in America was at work long before the 1960s, noted Brown. In the 1790s, when the U.S. was in its infancy, Christianity appeared to be dying in the nation. Only 5 to 10 percent of the adult population were church members. Methodists, Baptists, Lutherans, Episcopalians and Congregationalists were all struggling to attract new members and retain existing ones.

"Did you know after the Revolutionary War in the late 1700s that things were absolutely miserable on some of our campuses in America?" Brown, a WND columnist, asked. "Campuses that were founded as Christian campuses had a couple hundred students, and they could not find a single professing Christian among them.

"Another campus, the handful of Christian students would meet in secret and keep their meetings in code, because they didn't want anyone to know about it.

"What happened? Awakening came."

Indeed, the Second Great Awakening surfaced in the early 1800s, and hundreds of thousands of Americans turned back to Jesus. Churches in the East filled up again, and many new congregations were formed in the western part of the country as well.

However, by the mid-1850s, "immorality, violent crime, spiritualism, corruption and atheism were on the rise" once again, according to Brown. American churches were becoming more internalized. Then in 1857, a large prayer movement began in New York City and spread around the country. This revival, sometimes called the Third Great Awakening, resulted in a more compassionate society focused on curing social ills.

Brown noted the revival brought with it a massive cultural change: The United States abolished slavery only a few years after it began.

He believes a similar religious revival could change the culture by bringing traditional marriage back into favor. He pointed out just how quickly gay marriage has become accepted in America. As recently as 1990, fewer than a third of Americans condoned same-sex marriage.

In 1996, a Democrat president, Bill Clinton, signed the Defense of Marriage Act into law, and then-Sen. Joe Biden voted for it. Even in 2008, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were still saying marriage was between a man and a woman.

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While attitudes changed quickly, Brown doesn't believe gay marriage will be accepted forever just because the Supreme Court looks favorably on it now.

He noted that when the court ruled on Roe v. Wade in 1973, it hardly ended the abortion debate in favor of the pro-abortion side.

Instead, the pro-life movement rose up and still fights for the rights of unborn babies. And millennials are embracing the pro-life position, with polling data showing 59 percent of young Americans think abortion is morally wrong.

Brown also takes heart when he sees the Christian populations in Africa and Latin America soaring. It gives him hope that God has big things in store for America, too.

"We must factor in the God factor," Brown emphasized. "This is not just a sociological issue. This is not just a political issue. This is not just a demographic issue. This is also a spiritual issue. If we God's people will humble ourselves, turn away from sin in our own lives and begin to cry out, who knows what could happen next?"

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