Are We Failing the Next Generation?

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of [a]witnesses [who by faith have testified to the truth of God’s absolute faithfulness], stripping off every unnecessary weight and the sin which so easily and cleverly entangles us, let us run with endurance and active persistence the race that is set before us…” (Hebrews 12:1, AMP)

“Heaven and earth [as now known] will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35, AMP)

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping watch [on himself] according to Your word [conforming his life to Your precepts]. With all my heart I have sought You, [inquiring of You and longing for You]; Do not let me wander from Your commandments [neither through ignorance nor by willful disobedience].” (Psalm 119:9-10, AMP)

I’ve been a part of youth ministry for 10 years now. It’s pretty safe to say that I’ve seen most things, from giving a standing ovation at school plays to sitting and playing cards in a psych ward. It’s true that youth ministry requires a youth leader to put on many hats, so to speak: advisor, friend, leader, teacher, support system, cheerleader, etc.

But I think one of the most important parts of youth ministry is helping a younger person through the early stages of figuring out how to make their faith their own. For a lot of youth that I’ve worked with, they’re at the point in their life where their idea of Jesus is mostly made up of what their parents and relatives say He is. Until this point, they haven’t really thought deeply about what the Bible says, just what other people have taught them it says. So as a youth leader, you have the really cool opportunity to course correct some misunderstandings they have about what the Bible says about certain things.

Of course, that means you come in contact with some strange questions or  perspectives that are off base, but recently, during a lesson about the importance of reading our Bibles, a deeply troubling conversation came up. As we were unpacking how and why we read our Bibles as Christians, a youth expressed their feelings that reading the Bible wasn’t really necessary at all to know Jesus. Why did they have to try to read something that was hard to understand? Why couldn’t they just love God as best they can and have everything they need to know without ever cracking the book open?

And why were they so against reading it? Because reading they perceived reading the Bible as a religious act that their family members do, not something that could inform them of who God is and how to glorify Him. Instead, they were led to believe that reading the Bible was an unnecessary, antiquated act of indifferent traditional church. Not something to be regarded with passionate faith, but an empty obligation.

Of course, we challenged that youth in that belief, encouraging the group to view reading their Bible as something precious and exciting that we get to do as Christians and the only real way we have of knowing God and His character. But what does that misguided perspective say to me? 

It says that the generations going before this one– the generations responsible for maturing and leading their children and grandchildren into the faith– are dropping the ball. 

I know I’ve said this before, but I think it bears repeating: Everyone wants to be the “Joshua generation.” Growing up in a charismatic church, that was always an honorable thing to strive to be, because in the Old Testament, the generations that came before Joshua’s missed the mark. In truth, the generation prior was supposed to be the generation that claimed the Promised Land, but due to their disobedience and disbelief, they were barred from ever seeing it. Instead, it was the generation after– Joshua’s generation– that was able to go in and conquer the land for the nation of Israel and enjoy all the blessings that came with it.

And that’s great. It’s wonderful to want to be a part of the generation that witnesses the goodness of God, enjoying the fulfilled promise of being His. That’s why a lot of people champion it and love declaring a generation to be like that Joshua group. But there was one glaring failure of that generation. In Judges 2: 6-10, it says that Joshua died, was buried, and the whole generation that both served the Lord and got to experience the great things He did for Israel died as well. And in the very next verse? It says that the next generation did not know the Lord or anything that He had ever done for Israel.

That is devastating. How could a generation that walked so closely with the Lord neglect to do the one thing that actually mattered: passing on their faith and equipping the next generation to walk in it? That was their own children and grandchildren! And yet somehow there was a huge miscarriage of faith that the mighty Joshua generation was so wrapped up in what God did for them and through them and yet forgot to guide the generation after down the path to righteousness.

And I am realizing more and more that the same thing is happening again. The older generation and those that came before these youth coming up have neglected to pass on their faith, raising and discipling their children and grandchildren to know God and what He has done for them. We’re talking a generation that boasted preachers like Billy Graham and evangelical movements and crusades… a generation that prided itself in being one nation under God, and yet what happened that we could end up here? And that’s not to put everyone in the same boat. Yes, there are those that are amazing mentors and teachers, but more and more often, the kids coming up into adulthood now have no clue who God is or what He has done for them. It’s to the point where they don’t even think reading the Bible is important. And true, maybe I was just as intimidated by the sheer depth of God’s word at 16 as well, but at least I had people in my life that walked by faith enough to tell me WHY reading the Bible was important beyond the fact that it’s what you’re supposed to do.

God, help us. Because there is a generation coming that sees your Word as an empty religious symbol, and if we don’t start putting in the work to help them see that scripture is vital and the very fabric that makes up and informs our faith, then we will have failed them entirely.

I don’t want to be a Joshua generation, if it’s to the detriment of the generation that comes after. I don’t want a legacy that proves I knew the Lord in the deepest of relationships and yet neglected to raise my children and their generation in a way that helped them know Jesus too.

The truth is, this world will pass away. Every other thing that you can build your life on will crumble to ruin, except for the unchanging God. And as we grow older and more mature in the faith, it becomes our ministry to ensure that the generation after knows who He is; not just by our testimony, but in a way where they can know Him too. And that might be the most important ministry work we can possibly do, especially in this world that grows darker every day, and sets out to devour the next generation with confusion and dissension. None of this work being for our benefit, but for the benefit of those coming up behind us and to the glory of God.