Randall Murphree
AFA Journal editor
September 2006 – I just finished my weekly prayer time with Kevin, Scott, Merle and Steve. Each week, through these brothers, God brings me strength, insight, encouragement and challenge. They are the epitome of the principle from Proverbs 27:17 – “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”
Over the centuries, the same principle has echoed through classical literature and pop culture. In his Meditation XVII, 17th Century poet and pastor John Donne (1572-1631) wrote, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” Only a few decades ago, music artist Bill Withers wrote in his hit song Lean on Me:
… call on me, brother, when you need a hand.
We all need somebody to lean on.
… Lean on me, when you’re not strong,
And I’ll be your friend. I’ll help you carry on.
For the most part, I’ve always been aware that I need a lot of help. The help of my brothers and sisters in Christ. The help of my family. The help of my co-workers at AFA. The help of like-minded friends. The help of my neighbors. God uses many ways to humble me and reinforce this truth in my life.
Through the years, I’ve become aware that the same principle applies not only to individuals but also to groups of people, to churches, even to parachurch ministries such as AFA.
Christian churches and denominations need each other. We are each one a part of what Paul calls the Body of Christ. Pro-family advocacy groups are subject to the same principle. We need one another. AFA needs FamilyLife, FamilyLife needs Focus on the Family, Focus on the Family needs Family Research Center and Family Research Center needs American Life League.
Al Menconi is a dear brother who used an apt Lone Ranger analogy in his interview with AFA Journal last month. Al said that as a school teacher in San Diego in the 1980s, he thought he was the Lone Ranger speaking out on media issues and their relation to family.
“I thought I was the only one concerned,” Menconi said, “because wherever I went, I didn’t hear anyone else speaking out about the negative influence that much of today’s entertainment was having. Then one day, I came across AFA Journal and Donald Wildmon.
“I saw him interviewed on TV and I thought, ‘Wow! There’s somebody else who understands the situation.’ And it’s his influence, and his strength of character that gave me the strength to start Al Menconi Ministries.”
This month, AFA and Al Menconi Ministries are helping each other, as together we promote the Full Tilt Media Challenge, a challenge to parents and youth to try a 30-day media fast in which the family listens to no secular music – only Christian music.
Some may still debate the critical, and often negative, impact of media entertainment on the family in this generation. Al’s Full Tilt Media Challenge is a workable and creative way to put the media to the test in your own home in just one month’s time.
At AFA, we challenge you to join Al and us, working together to make our families’ lives richer, deeper and stronger in Christ.
And remember – none of us can do it alone. 
