God’s Celestial Ambassador: The Life and Times of Dr. Frank E. Stranges - Part VIII
By Raymond A. Keller, PhD, a.k.a. “Cosmic Ray,” the author of the international awards-winning Venus Rising Series, published by Headline Books and available on Amazon.com, while supplies last.
Venus Rising: A Concise History of the Second Planet
Final Countdown: Rockets to Venus
Cosmic Ray's Excellent Venus Adventure
Lady Columba Venus Revelations
Dr. Frank E. Stranges, who grew up on tough urban streets, spoke from experience in warning young people across the country about the dangers in gang affiliations. He urged parents to pay attention to their children and love them enough to inspire them to seek a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Working with Wayward Youth
Besides concerning himself with flying saucers manned by extraterrestrial visitors and the international communist conspiracy, Dr. Frank E. Stranges played an important role in the Southern California society of the late 1950s by his active participation in the seemingly never-ending struggle against juvenile delinquency. Dr. Frank firmly believed that our strongest weapon in fighting this scourge among contemporary youth was the Bible, the Word of God for humankind in all ages. Dr. Frank sadly noted that many of the youth of his day were living in a world where faith, love, discipline, sympathy and understanding were sorely absent. Against the emerging background of juvenile delinquency, an overall increase in crime throughout the nation and the threat of world conflict, the evangelist felt Sunday school instruction might be augmented on many levels conducive to promoting a great knowledge of the Bible as the Word of God and its immense power to change lives for the better.
In elaborating on this idea, Dr. Frank E. Stranges declared, “There is immense and vital power in the Word of God. But knowledge is needed to release that power. It is the role of the Sunday school to disseminate knowledge of the basic truths upon which our civilization rests. It is through the Sunday school that the dynamic gospel which Christ brought to the world must be made accessible to new generations. And it must be done in such a way that with it comes true understanding of that gospel.
“We must assess the moral climate of today with a most critical eye and ascertain the degree to which it is responsible for the present scourges of crime, delinquency and subversion. If we are to change that climate- if the rampant materialism that is at the base of so many of today’s evils is to be forced into retreat- we must look to every spiritual weapon at our command. Certainly, the Sunday school is such a weapon.”
For Dr. Frank, the importance of Ephesians 6:12 (KJV) would frequently come to mind when considering questions pertaining to the wayward youth: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Apparently, one of the major causes for the gaining of unrighteous worldly footholds among our young people was parents failing in their responsibilities toward their children. On the night of Wednesday, 1 April 1959, Dr. Frank E. Stranges was speaking on the subject of “Juvenile Delinquency” at a youth rally of the Immanuel Gospel Temple at 1050 South Hill Street in Los Angeles, California. Having just completed a nationwide tour investigating this topic and speaking on it in many of America’s major cities, the evangelist reported that, “The consensus, particularly of police, schools and churches, is that the parents are shrugging off their duties. We are placing it back squarely where it belongs.”
The reporter covering Dr. Frank’s oration, Gene Cowles of the Los Angeles Examiner, did explain that the evangelist was formerly affiliated with a detective agency in Boston, Massachusetts, where he saw first-hand the growing cases of neglect for their children evidenced by urban parents. Cowles reported that Dr. Frank would continue speaking on this issue and others associated with juvenile delinquency at the Immanuel Gospel Temple on the nights of Saturday, 4 April, and Sunday, 5 April, at 7:30. At 7:30 p.m. on Friday, 3 April 1959, however, Dr. Frank E. Stranges was scheduled to speak on the, “Mysteries of the Flying Saucers” at the Temple, in a family night presentation.
From Dr. Frank E. Stranges’ sermon notes, these are the principle causes of juvenile delinquency:
1. Broken homes
2. Too-busy parents
3. Lax police departments
4. Too-lenient judges
5. Unscrupulous lawyers
6. Slum areas
7. Too-crowded, understaffed schools
And from those same notes, these are some of ways Dr. Frank E. Stranges suggested as to how parents could help their children:
1. Never aggravate your child discussing religion.
2. Never blast them out because they do not attend your church.
3. Never embarrass your son or daughter in public or private concerning your church.
4. Never condemn them by quoting condemning scriptures at them every time you see them.
5. Always live Jesus Christ before them.
6. Speak kindly toward them and entreat them with love.
7. When discussing religion, lift up Jesus Christ at all times and glorify His Holy Name.
8. Live at home, with the same spiritual fervor as you display when you are in church.
9. Pray much, not for display, but to be drawn closer to the Lord Jesus Christ.
10. Read your Bible daily.
Clearly, the independent evangelist was pointing out that institutionalized religions had less to offer than the children coming into a personal relationship with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That would go a long way toward reducing and even eliminating juvenile delinquency, as well as putting lost souls on the right track in finding the solution to a plethora of other problems.
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