At an animal sanctuary in Locust Grove, Georgia, a full grown bear, lion, and tiger, all live in the same enclosure, where they play together, eat together, and sleep together. Now, in the wild, a lion, tiger, and bear would not do anything together, in fact they would most likely kill each other and would certainly fight if they came in contact with each other. So, what’s the difference? The difference is that this unlikely trio of friends have known each other since they were just baby animals. They grew up together, and were never taught to fight or kill or dislike each other. They were never taught the natural fear of each other that animals in the wild learn as they grow up. You might say their hearts were changed, and they learned to love each other rather than fear and hate each other.
We can learn a lot from those animals. We live in a world where the many young people are taught to look out only for themselves, get what they want, and to even hate those who are different than them. We live in a world where people demand their rights, even if it takes away other people’s rights. A world where selfishness and pride run rampant, and are even praised, and a world where life is all about me, myself, and I.
The only solution is to change the heart. When we learn to focus more on others, when we learn to give more than we get, and when we learn that true happiness comes from loving others, we can end up like the lion, tiger, and bear – where we can get along with anyone, no matter their differences, because we’ve learned that when we put others first, we impact the world around us and our own lives as well!
Have you ever noticed that many times the people who go on shooting rampages or other vengeance driving actions are the ones who have no friends, who are lonely, and who no one seems to notice or care about? If we would just learn to show kindness and compassion to everyone, we might reach people like this with hope, with love, and with care, which often is exactly what they are looking for in the first place!
Jesus Christ said in Luke 6:45, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
People seek to rid this world of wickedness and wrong, and seek to change the behavior of those who ruin and destroy our lives – but yet they go about it the completely wrong ways. The only solution to the problems in our country and in our world is to change people’s hearts, and only God can do that!
Our country, our schools, our families, our youth – they are all headed at breakneck speed down a path to destruction, and there is no hope apart from Jesus Christ. He alone can change the heart, He alone can satisfy the longings and desires, and He alone can guarantee us a life for all of eternity in heaven with Him.
People need to hear about Jesus, and not the downplayed “Jesus” many people promote and claim to follow in today’s world, but the TRUE Jesus found in the pages of God’s Word – the Bible! The Jesus who said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
Changing young hearts isn’t always easy. And we have to remember that we get out of life what we put into it! Many schools and groups bring in speakers who just talk down at young people, or who have no experience themselves in putting others first and seeking to make a difference – and the young people can see right through them. You see, it takes a changed heart to impact other hearts! You can’t just tell people to change…you have to show them what change is!
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