Children need protection. But all too often today, they don't receive it.
This pattern of society not protecting children was recently jackhammered by the American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds). In announcing the "Doctors Protecting Children Declaration," medical practitioners affiliated with ACPeds called for the medical community to "immediately stop the promotion of social affirmation, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries for children and adolescents who experience distress over their biological sex"1 (emphasis by source). Rarely in our time have we heard a bolder or clearer statement concerning "transgenderism" than this one.
As we begin the "Lighting Up Culture Weekly Report" from the Dobson Culture Center, it's vital that we recognize both the ups and the downs of our cultural moment. On the one hand, those of us who stand for the biblical worldview have watched as it has suffered defeat after defeat in the public square. We have seen an entire system of gender ideology arise and take hold of the minds of many. Faced with a public platform that would make godless Romans blush, many people around us have offered barely a whisper of response to men entering women's sports, boys using girls' bathrooms, and kids undergoing body-ravaging surgeries to fit their "gender identity."
All of this has proven greatly disheartening to many Christians. But here we remember an important truth: culture does not travel in a straight line. There are surprising developments, shocking turnarounds, and even outright miracles that occur in our midst. While the outcome of the bold declaration by doctors to protect children is not yet known, its mere existence is remarkable. No less a cultural influencer than Elon Musk took notice of it, sharing a clip of the press conference with his 187 million followers. (Musk reportedly has a child who's been taken in by the godless gender ideology.) Nor was he a lone witness here; his X post was liked 297,000 times, a huge number.
As Christians, we should be encouraged by the stand taken by the American College of Pediatricians. Courage begets courage, and these doctors have dared to challenge the existing narrative surrounding "transgenderism." Their example should put a caffeine shot or two in our coffee. We may feel overmatched today in the public square, but we are on the side of truth—not miles away from the so-called "right side of history," as we're told. The side of truth is the right side of history.
We can know this for certain: the days are evil, as the Bible says (Eph. 5:15-16), but God and His truth will prevail. Let's act on this reality. We may not be doctors, and we may not have a huge public megaphone, but we each have a voice and can use our collective voices to communicate God's truth and grace. In addition, let's invest in the rising generation. Those in the LGBTQIA+ community are eager to disciple our children. While praying for the community's salvation, we must not allow them to take our parental responsibilities from us. With much trust in and prayerful dependence on the Lord, we need to train children to know and live by the biblical worldview. To this end, the Dobson Culture Center will produce resources for parents to help them engage and train their children to think biblically. This is critical!
As Christians, we are a people of hope. We know that every person is an image-bearer, and every sinner is in reach of the transforming grace of God. Even those currently captured by godless ideologies are not too far gone for God to save. Let's live by those convictions and testify to them.
Furthermore, in a time when many are silent or silenced, let's do what the ACPeds did: let's dare to raise our voices in public to protect children. Whatever the cost, our efforts will be worth it!
[1] “Doctors Protecting Children Declaration,” Doctors Protecting Children, June 10, 2024, Web.