Wicked Hearts

For months now the news has been filled with stories about Jerry Sandusky.  And, if you are like me, you are now sick of it and wish that we could just move on.  But we can't.  The trials and accusations will continue, probably for years.  The media continues to press the issues trying to blame everyone and tear down the university and the football program.  Many who have always hated Penn State and Joe Paterno continue to call for NCAA sanctions and even the "death penalty" which would result in the dropping of PSU football for years.  None or this makes any sense since Sandusky was not even an employee of the school or a coach when all of these sad events took place.  But many writers and announcers pour on their contempt for the school and the football program by spreading blatant untruths and nobody seems to challenge their lies and deceit.  I don't pretend to know where the fault, if any, at Penn State may lie nor if there was a cover-up. but I would agree with one thing that Governor "One-Term" Corbett just said when he admitted that it was originally very hard to collect evidence because of the outstanding reputation that Sandusky had around the nation. He was strongly admired for not only his coaching success but for the organization he had built to help thousands of underprivileged children.  He was very well respected, a model citizen to so many. Even today, many still can't believe what he has done.  And so I can understand that administrators, without any concrete evidence, would be very reluctant to make charges against him that probably couldn't be proven.  But it appears that many, whether it be right or wrong, are going to continue to face charges of cover-ups and improper actions.  And so, because of one man, many adults are dealing with the pain of sexual abuse, administrators are going to be charged and lose their jobs, an honest, admired man, Joe Paterno will have a tarnished image, Penn State's fine academic and athletic reputations will need to be rebuilt, and thousands will deal with the deep disappointment and shock of the entire situation. Many will bear the pain. And all of this is because of the sin of one man.  But we should be reminded that is was the sacrificial action of one man, the Lord Jesus Christ, that provided all of us with a way to deal with our sin.  And while we condemn the actions of Sandusky, we need to be reminded that we live in a world of sin where so many are infected with evil desires and sin actions - from the highest ranking officials and celebrities to those with nothing.  God's Word reminds us that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  I often picture a huge wall with loads of ladders of all sizes.  Some are longer than others.  But all fall short of the top.  Throughout this whole Sandusky scandal, I have often been reminded of the verse Jeremiah 17:9  "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"  Only the Lord knows our hearts.  And people often hide that wickedness until some event stirs them to react with the wickedness of their heart.  That's why our hearts need the transforming that only the Lord can provide. The verse which I most often pray to the Lord talks about those inner things that nobody but He can see.  Psalm 19:14  "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in they sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer."  Hopefully the Sandusky affair will one day be an event of the past but in the meantime may we live in complete dependence upon God and in His will.