We teach our young ministers at Collierville First Pentecostal that they each need to keep a prepared sermon in their Bibles. Our pastor, Pastor Terry Hunt, was scheduled to be out of town at a ministerial conference, and I was asked to speak on a Wednesday night mid-week service. As a surprise, I asked the young ministers if anyone was prepared with a short sermon they would like to give to the congregation. Stunned, it seemed that no one had anything prepared, except for a former WWE  wrestling superstar named “SpellBinder.” Del Rios has recently accepted a calling to the ministry. He stood and said, “If no one else has something, I do.”

    When he walked to the pulpit, he started by saying, “If every parent knew that at the age of eighteen their child would be mandatorily placed into the military and positioned on the front line of a war for our nation, how would we spend our lives while they were growing up? Would we simply take them to Disney World, long vacations, amusement parks or other various forms of time-consuming entertainment? Or would we teach them different skills that would be necessary for evading an enemy or perhaps teach them martial arts or have them trained in hand-to-hand combat?” He said, “I believe that you would do everything in your power to prepare your child for as many possibilities that he/she would face on the battlefield protecting and fighting for our country.” Brother Rios continued and said, “Our children, when they leave our homes, are going out into a world that will be vying for their hearts and minds.”

    Over the next couple of days, I contemplated his thought and the gravity of his short sermon. We are in a war for our children. It is our responsibility to lead them into a relationship with the Lord so that they can find the purpose that God has for their lives.  We as parents should take the time to prepare them for this world by taking them to church each Sunday and teaching them right from wrong. We must teach them respect for their elders and to open a door for their fellow man.  I personally believe that if the enemy can steal our time then he has a head-start in on winning this war. We as parents must turn off the televisions and computers in our homes and spend time with our children each night. We must bring back the traditions of family dinner (without cellphones) each night where we talk about their school day after saying grace over our meals. It is essential to prepare for the spiritual war that we are battling for our homes, our families, and our children.

Pastor Billy Patton

Assistant Pastor of Collierville First Pentecostal Church

Licensed Minister with United Pentecostal Church Inc.