Last night my (newly) 13 year old had a sleepover for his birthday. So, Andrew and 7 other 13ish boys slept outside in the tent. Andrew has gone to school with these guys since kindergarten.
We laughed at Paul Blart (we project it on the garage wall outside like a drive-in....very cool!), grilled burgers at 10 PM, lit sparklers...very fun.
It was awesome watching these BIG boys (most of them taller than me) play like little kids hitting a baseball around the yard, swinging on the swing set, chasing each other....
But, around 2 AM, they started watching some YouTube videos. Some were silly videos THEY had made- you know pretending to be BIG FOOT, bathroom humor- usual BOY things. Others were videos that are just posted by the millions of users to YouTube. Some definitely bordering on inappropriate sexual innuendo....(and I am sure they were being "careful" of what they were showing with me there!).
A couple of the boys are atheist, a couple "Christian", going to church, but not living out their faith..... And, I am again reminded of what a different world my son is growing up in.
Not that there haven't been sexual pressures, drugs, and alcohol in the past. I remember being in 6th grade when a neighborhood friend took me into his house and showed me his grandfather's Penthouse collection- a small room with these magazines stacked (I am not exaggerating) to the ceiling. Too embarrassed to throw them away? Still read the hundreds and hundreds of issues? Waiting to sell them? Have no idea why he kept them....
I began drinking when I was in 7th grade....so I know alcohol has been a problem for a long time....
But...
There is such a SATURATION of culture..... Some of these guys (judging by their expertise on navigating YouTube) spend hours on the computer a day. No limits on TV, vidoe games, or movies. One has already battled pornography addiction. None of them (except for Andrew) have a STRONG, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Listening to them talk last night, two of them are "experts" on evolution.
The enemy is in full assault on this generation.
More than ever, we as Christians have to be a Light in a dark world. We have to speak up. We have to pray for the Lost. We must LOVE them in actual relationships.
One of these guys went to a loving, Christian preschool with Andrew. (Which, looking back, is strange. I don't think his parents are Believers.) Now, he is an atheist. Expert evolutionist. Educated in pornography.
Heartbreaking.
When I look at him, I still see the 4 year old smiling....long, mussy hair. Sweet heart.
Battle going on for his SOUL.
His SOUL.
ETERNITY.
This morning, (after about 4 hours of sleep) the realization again hits me.
We are not playing games.
There is a battle raging.
Another guy leaves for Japan next week to spend the summer with his extended family. Again, such a different world he lives in.....No one he will be in contact with believes in the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
It is not too late for these boys.
Pray for this next generation. We can become cocooned in our "safe" lives, forgetting there are lost souls out there that need the love of Jesus.
4 thoughts shared....:
Tracy,
You are right! It is not too late for this generation! The love of Jesus can save and deliver them through our lives. We do not to keep them in our prayers.
Amen
Christy
Amen, so very true.
POWERFUL POST....Thanks for sharing and thank you for spurring us on to pray...
Our children are growing up in a very different world. So much onslaught in the media. All the more reason for parents to present a biblical worldview to our kids, and let them see us live it out in front of them. They must see the beauty of God's ways over the ugliness of sin. They need to see their parents believe that and live it!
Just has some guest authors talk about this on my blog:
http://www.covenanteyes.com/blog/2009/05/18/preparing-our-kids-to-live-in-this-sexualized-culture/
Post a Comment