In the last year and a half or so I’ve heard much talk about
the current generation of 10-30 year olds.
They’ve been called “Millenials” and the “iY” generation, a reference to
their lives being surrounding by technology.
I personally prefer the “Everyone Gets a Trophy” generation. Point being that on all fronts that this
group of young people is being raised in an easy-access environment that places
little value on critical thinking skills or struggle. It used to be a joke that adults went to
therapy blaming all of their life’s woes on their parents; now I wonder if
they’d go to therapy blaming all of life’s woes on the internet or the Apple
corporation. Personal responsibility has
shifted.
Before you stop reading thinking this is about to become a
treatise on what’s wrong with today’s young people, let me say this…it’s not
really their fault. Yes, I know I just
made reference to personal responsibility, and I’ll be getting to that, but
first let me say that no one gets to choose the time period he or she is born
into, nor do they get to choose their parentage. And if choice could be made, how could you
decide? I work in a Christian
environment, largely with Chritsian young people who fall into this age group,
so allow me to take a perspective that comes from Christ’s own life.
- Jesus, as scripture tells us, was conceived by an unwed teenage mom.
- He almost did not get an earthly father, “And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly” (Matthew 1:19).
- He wasn’t born in a hospital, or birthing center, or even a nice home, “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn” (Luke 2:7)
- Not only was He born away from home in less than ideal conditions, He was taken on the run by his parents , “And he [Joseph] rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt” (Matthew 2:14)
- His mom and step-dad didn’t always understand Him, “And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, ‘Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.’ And he said to them, ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?’ And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them.” (Luke 2:48-50)
- He was rejected in his own hometown by those who had known Him His whole life, “and coming to his hometown he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, ‘Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?’ And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household’” (Mark 13:54-57)
His earthly ministry didn’t truly begin until He was near 33
years old, and the rest of His story is fairly familiar. Despite the signs, wonders, and solid
teaching, He was often rejected or criticized.
Even in the end, His most faithful followers failed Him in a variety of
ways and He was compelled to die an agonizingly painful death to save the world
from sin.
I fail to find anywhere in the scriptures that Jesus blamed
His parents, or the society around Him, for His troubles. He accepted early on His role in the
world. Even more, we are told repeatedly
in the New Testament that we are to rejoice in suffering, and that in
suffering, we come closest to Christ.
Suffering for sufffering’s own sake is not the end goal, but suffering
leads to a host of positives: endurance, character, perseverance, comfort,
hope, etc. When the deck is all played
out, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved
us” (Romans 8:37).
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