| One Boy at a Time
by G. Robert Cook
Rocky Mountain district superintendent
What an encouraging sight! There they were, two boys the age of typical Royal Rangers, standing at attention and saluting. We were riding in a funeral procession, escorting the body of one of our veteran Rocky Mountain ministers to a cemetery. I'm sure the two boys had no idea whose funeral procession it was, but they stood next to their lemonade stand on that residential street in Littleton, CO, and stood at attention, saluting until the entire procession passed by. When we arrived at the cemetery, numbers of people remarked how special that was, to see two American boys show the level of respect they did.
Yes, our newspapers are filled with tragic stories of young boys who end up ruining their lives because of horrible choices made in their formative years. Just a few days before the "funeral salute" incident, we read the news of two other boys in our area who had been arrested for unspeakable abuse of other small children. How can that happen? What can we do to stop the vicious cycle of violence and abuse?
More than ever before, it is time for our churches to emphasize the crucial importance of our Royal Rangers programs. In a day when story after story of scandalous behavior of church leaders toward minors appear on our news, it is time for the church to offer quality, loving, pure, consistent leadership to our young boys.
We all know that the two most powerful adult influences in a young man's life are his father and mother. But we also know the tragic statistics of our culture-that many thousands of young boys in America have never known the love and attention of a caring father. Do we as a church have the right to sit back and say, "Tsk, tsk, too bad?" Absolutely not. We have the duty as the church of Jesus Christ to come alongside those single moms, to come alongside those lonely boys and provide the kind of quality leadership that will eternally impact their lives.
For boys who are privileged to grow up in a loving family with a father and mother who love each other and their children, the Royal Rangers leader can complement those parents' efforts. But for boys without that family, the Royal Rangers leader can fill the desperate vacuum. The leader can actually serve as a lifesaver; young boys can be snatched from the horrible designs of the enemy by a caring, genuine Royal Rangers leader.
Let's not be people who bemoan the fact that God hasn't allowed us to speak to thousands of people in a crowded stadium, or that God hasn't given us a wonderful solo voice. Let's get busy helping change the world-one boy at a time! May we be leaders with character, honesty, compassion, patience, tenacity, flexibility, and grace so that we can impact for eternity the generation of young boys God has given us!
G. Robert Cook is the superintendent of the Assemblies of God, Rocky Mountain district. Prior to that, he pastored in Boulder, CO, and Provo, UT, and also served on the faculty of Bethany College of California. He and his wife Sherilyn have two sons, one daughter and one granddaughter. He has never played professional baseball or football and has never appeared on the Larry King show, but he does love chocolate.
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