I just got home from a wonderful weekend at the beach with my aunt and cousins. Usually, we go to Destin or Gulf Shores...somewhere that's private and away from all the party scenes, but this time we went to Panama City because my cousin was competing in a cheerleading competition there.
We rented a condo and were on the top floor of our building. Our view was amazing!
While we were sitting on the balcony one night, my aunt looked at the sunset and said "How can anyone look at something that beautiful and say there's not a God?"I've always heard people say that, and I've thought it myself. It really made me think that night. All weekend, we had been surrounded by kids that were in PC for their Spring Break vacation. They all had one thing on their minds...partying. I can't tell you how many high school kids we saw drinking, and there were a ton of teen clubs close to the beach that stayed open all night long. These kids certainly were not looking at the sunset thinking about the awesome Creator that made it.
And my biggest question is why? It seems like kids (teens and young adults, especially) are the hardest age group to witness to. They seem to think they don't need God. I know that I fall into that category - I'm only 22, but I have no idea how to witness to my peers or how to make them understand that they won't live forever and that THEY NEED GOD!
I've heard a lot of young people say that they want to have fun for now and that they'll worry about God and all that other stuff when they're older. That statement makes me cringe. You can't put off a relationship with God - you need Him NOW.
I've been wanting to read the book UnChristian (by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons). It's about the way that young Americans view Christians. Since I haven't gotten around to reading it yet (it's a little thick for a beach read), I'm going to quote the book review in my Sunday School book (Fusion Magazine, March - May 2009, Randall House Publishing) -
"[The] book, UnChristian, presents finding from research done by the Barna Group showing that young Americans (16-29) outside the church view Christians as 'Antihomosexual, too political, hypocritical, insincere, and sheltered.'...Using the hard evidence of research, UnChristian chronicles a growing polarization between the beliefs of this generation and their parents. Increasing numbers of young Americans accept homosexuality, cohabitation and premarital sex as viable lifestyle options. As the older generation expresses strong views against this type of behavior, younger Americans outside the church grow more and more disillusioned with the church."
It sounds like we need to bridge a really big generation gap, doesn't it? And I mean WE...I may be 22, but I have an old soul. A lot of the things mentioned in that paragraph were going on at the beach this weekend and it just made me cringe. But cringing and correcting isn't going to win any souls. The book review in Fusion continued to say -
"Christians are known for what they stand against. We are famous for what we oppose, rather than who we are for."
I know people that look at Christians that way. I've had friends say "thou shalt not judge" when I start harping on them to start acting right. They all like that verse. (Matthew 7:21 "Judge not, that ye be not judged.)
Why is it that they seem to think my concern for them is judgment? I know that's the devil working - trying his best to get me to stop trying to tell my friends and peers about Jesus. He is always so quick to point out to me that I'm not perfect either and that I seem like a hypocrite trying to tell others how to live. But I have God on my side, and I know that He can use imperfect people like me to bring about great things.
I didn't get to actually share my testimony with anyone this weekend, but I hope that my actions showed my testimony to them. I hope that they could see the way I treated others and see Jesus shining through me.
We do have a huge gap between us and the unchurched young people in this country, but God still saves. And His net is wide enough for any generation gone astray. Please pray for our young people - the unsaved and the saved. They are our future and our responsibility.
Somehow, we have to show people what and Who we are for - instead of what we're against. We need to dwell on the positive instead of the negative (my Sunday School teacher tells us that every week). And we need to have fun! Why would anyone want to be part of something that's dull and serious and somber all the time? God wanted us to be joyful! (Check out Psalm 17:22)
