Is the world getting worse?

I recently received an interesting article by Steve Gallagher, forwarded to me via e-mail. It's about a 2003 film called Time Changer. Here is what the article said:

The storyline occurs in 1890 and revolves around Bible professor Russell Carlisle, who is unwittingly transported by a time machine into modern-day America. For five days, he finds himself trapped in a wicked world to which you and I have become shamefully accustomed.

The article goes on to talk about how Carlisle was shocked and deeply troubled by the television and movies we watch as well as the high divorce rate, etc. of our times. It says at one point he was invited to a movie by Christian friends and ran out screaming at the employees, ""You have to stop this movie! That actor took the Lord's name in vain! He blasphemed God!" And of course, the whole point of the article is whether we modern-day Christians have grown cold.

The article asks:
• Why aren't we more outraged when we hear actors take the Lord's name in vain?
• How can we look upon scantily clad girls on television without blushing?
• Why do we permit TV to indoctrinate our children with the world's values?

Then goes on to say:
The Church is obviously backslidden. The greater question it provokes is: Could we be in the Great Apostasy and not be aware of it?

I guess the first thing I think when I read articles like this is that I'm not sure the world is any uglier now than it ever was. We certainly have more information at our fingertips and we hear about absolutely every atrocity that takes place in every part of the world. But.... have you read about some of the things that went on in the Old Testament? To some of those things I can surely say, "They would NEVER get away with that now." There are a lot of things that happened back then that sicken me when I read about them. The atrocities of man are nothing new.

Were they better in the 1890's? I suppose it's possible. Maybe mankind was ugly from the beginning, got better in the 1800's and then got worse again. OR, maybe everyone didn't hear about all the ugly stuff that went on. Maybe people just weren't as inclined to publicize it as they are now. People, even families, kept their little secrets. Now they are tried in court and thrown in jail and two minutes later, it's all over the internet.

I suppose it's true that we are not as shocked by all of this as they would have been in 1890, because we hear about these things all the time. But just because I'm not shocked, does not mean I'm not sad. And even though I'm sad, I'm glad I have a pretty broad understanding of the world.

I don't want to discount everything this article has said. I think there are good things to think about. I guess I just look at it from the opposite direction. I try to always keep my heart wide open to God. I want to know my heart belongs to Him and that His plan is the most important thing in my life. I want Him to teach me to care about what He cares about, and to do the things He wants done. I want to be full of Him, to abide in Him.

And as long as that's my heart's desire, I guess I just really don't have much concern over the effect the world will have on me.