Rosewood

Rosewood is a small rural community in Wayne County North Carolina. My parents are buried there. I remember the community, as a child, as prosperous, with beautiful farms, well kept homes, and, most of all, wholesome people. Around 1965, I gave the graduation address at the Rosewood High School.

Rosewood made National Headlines this week when a very stupid school principal allowed grades to be bought as a funding paradox for the school, rather then the usual selling of chocolate candy (the black school principal has since resigned). Incredulously, the children were probably being taught early in life that anything can be bought, votes, politicians, even school grades. Has the corruption so taken over the federal government, the State government, and the County governments, that now it actually reach down into the recesses of an elementary school?

Last week, a United Nations meeting was held to discuss national corruption. 142 of the 192 nations in the UN were represented. They have given UN's carte-blanche now to inspect governments for corruption. President Zuma of South Africa is facing a real problem with his African National Congress party, who insists that the most liberal wing, the communist and unions, have more influence on his government. (the communists and unions in South Africa are known for their corruption.)

It is not just in America, not even in Rosewood, that we seemingly have a complete lack of oversight in anything pertaining to government. It was reported in the State control news media that the Wayne County manager is the highest paid county manager in the state ($174,000). Equaling the pay of the states governor and more then most college presidents. He seems to have problems with numbers. The same week news reports shows that the Wayne County Memorial Hospital had cheated the state out of 1 million dollars. It is in this county, at a state run mental hospital, a mental patient died of neglect, even though millions of dollars in state funds, supposedly for mental hospitals, have disappeared. We hear incredible stories on the news everyday. This morning, the story of a mother who was using her 5 year old daughter for prostitution. John Adams, second president of the United Sates said, “God almighty, the great legislator will straighten everything out.”

This week, the world celebrates the fall of the wall between East and West Germany. The center of East German motivation for freedom was the city of Lapse. Substantially, it was Saint Nicholas' non denominational church in Lapse where a small group of East Germans, admits the degradations and atheism of the rest of the city and country, were holding on to the promises in Christian faith. The corrupt government would fill the sanctuary with godless communists, in an effort to keep believers and reformers out. The government police, like the government officials in this country, and even at Rosewood, tried every intimidating tactic to discourage those who believe in basic values, such as liberty, HONESTY, godliness, and those with honest Christian belief in themselves and their children must stand up for such throughout America and even at Rosewood. Paul's marvelous letter to the church in Rome, makes the following statement “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the CALLED according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did PREDESTINATE to be CONFORMED to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30. Moreover whom he did PREDESTINATE, them he also CALLED: and whom he CALLED, them he also JUSTIFIED: and whom he JUSTIFIED, them he also GLORIFIED.” (Romans 8:28-30)

For those of you in Rosewood, in Wayne county, in North Carolina, in America, remember we have five verbs here in past tense, God called, predestined, glorified, justified, and conformed. These five verbs are important in your lifestyle, in the teaching and the building of character in all school children. Character determines destination. The selling of grades, the emptiness of corruption, the mangling of numbers, is leading to the detriment of students and the destruction of a Christian nation.