Monday 17 March 2008

Random Ramblings

So, it's finally time for another solid post and even if it's just a long post of random ramblings, I hope you get something out of it. I've been learning many things the hard way all the way from gossip and the daily decisions I make. I've learned that not only do you reap what you sow, but you also reap a lot longer than you sow, a lot harder than you sow, and a lot more than you sow. Now, I'm reaping the consequences of choices I made over a year ago that I never thought would have any future effect on me. Something else is about the doors in our Christian life. If you see an open door, take it. If you come to a closed door, don't camp out in front of it waiting for it to open because then you're useless for anything else. And don't force a door open because it'll only end in a disaster.

There's also been something else on my mind that's going to need a little more explaining and I'm not sure if it'll make any sense at all but here goes. As I look around, children and youth nowadays are in a sad situation. Each one feels that they need to conform to a certain likeness in order to be accepted. They require a certain image, opinion, political viewpoint, or way of thinking in order to be accepted by their peers. By doing this, they wear a mask and completely forget who they really are. They may be able to tell you what they believe but have absolutely no support for it. Why? Because it's not what they believe. It's merely been adopted from someone else. Our generation has become afraid to be different. Our culture and the media has set up so many ideals that everyone is trying to reach. There's the ideal body image, the ideal career, spouse, family, house, lifestyle. Everybody's looking for or trying to work towards these ideals. They put all their time, energy, and money into these things hoping to achieve a certain level of wealth or prosperity. They feel that's where their happiness lies and they only come out disappointed. One day they realize that their ideal doesn't exist or it didn't bring the satisfaction hoped for. They look back feeling as if their whole life has been wasted, thrown away. I have yet to find a person who has a perfect life, the perfect spouse without fault, the perfect house. Many people think that if they only had so much money, they would be happy. But it's never enough. The more they have, the more they want.

The scary thing is these falsehoods have been drilled into the minds of children. That if they're pretty, famous, have lots of money, they'll be happy. They idolize movie stars and celebrities and all their glamour, glitter, and gold not realizing they are some of the unhappiest people yet. They wear a mask in front of the camera that looks good but inside are torn apart. They get into drugs, have broken relationships, suffer from depression and the list goes on. By looking up to these people, children too begin to wear a mask and don't know who they are anymore.

What are we putting into the minds of children? Are we encouraging different lifestyles or asking them to go along with everyone else? Are we putting false ideals in front of them? Or are we pointing them to the cross showing them that only Jesus can bring true fulfillment in their lives? What are we doing for the next generation?

Sorry that was so long, but I hope you got something out of it. Blessings!

3 comments:

  1. You really got that one right! Lately I am sensing that there is a deep struggle going on right within the church too, but I can't put my finger on it. We really need to be in prayer for our church family.
    Sometimes we are quick to try and change people because we think they should see things as we see them, that we don't realize God would have done better at showing them what they need to know. That is something I really learned the last while. I was concerned about some things going on with a few people and thought maybe I should talk to them. But then after praying about it, God Himself worked in their lives, and all I needed to do was pray for them. Also sometimes we may just not know the whole story. Well I'm rambling back and forth now!
    Thanks for sharing that, I was blessed by it!

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  2. Great post, Margaret! It was so true! Our generation is in serious trouble....lives are being destroyed, wrecked, and completely messed up....all because of the thinking that worldly things will bring fulfillment into their lives! They desperately need the hope of Jesus!

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  3. One thing I notice are the low standards, not only for teens, but also for children. Parents unknowingly raise spoiled children who can't sit still, listen, or do anything unless they want to.

    In first, second, and third grade Sunday School I had memorize the books of the Bible, the Ten Commandments, and we had started the meanings of the Apostle's creed as found in the Catechism. Now I'm teaching third grade on Wednesday nights(at a different church) and I doubt if they could even find the Ten Commandments in their Bibles without help.

    It makes me sad.

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