A few weeks ago I was horrified to read in the newspaper about two twelve year old girls who lured their friend into the woods after a sleepover and tried to stab her to death. Afterwards, one of them told police she had no remorse. “I guess it may have been wrong,” she said. The other girl said that when she heard the victim’s screams, “The bad part of me wanted her to die. The good part of me wanted her to live.”
Twelve year old girls? Trying to kill their friend? And all because of a fictional character they followed on the Internet.
The perverse ludicrousness of the story seared my brain with incredulity. How could girls as young as this fall into such evil? How could their minds be so warped and depraved?
The answer came as quickly as the question. Because they don’t know God. Because they have probably not been taught what is right and what is wrong.
If their families don’t go to church . . .
If schools are forbidden to talk about God . . .
If it’s unlawful to post the 10 Commandments on the wall of a courthouse or the walls of a school . . .
How do they learn what is right and what is wrong?
As adults, I think many of us just assume children will grow up knowing that murder is wrong. That is a basic moral code, right? But if there is a vacuum in their religious education and they spend most of the time on the Internet, juxtaposed with a couple of hours in front of the TV and a weekly outing to the movies, where are they learning their values?
George Washington Was Right
More and more I think we are seeing that George Washington was right:
“Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.” George Washington.
In a world where a majority of children are growing up without any Christian education, our own children become more vulnerable as well. And as we go through our own struggles, and particularly if crisis strikes, we are often unaware of the enormous battle being waged for their souls.
However, if we allow God to draw our hearts nearer to Him in the midst of crisis, we may actually develop a heightened sensitivity to our children’s needs.
This happened to Faith when her husband left and asked for divorce. As the insecurities of change threatened her middle-school sons, she searched for a way to connect with them and encourage them to look to God for strength. Together, they began listening to and discussing CDs of The Kingdom Series by Chuck Black, which brings the Bible to life through the glory of battling knights in a medieval setting and is sometimes described as a Pilgrims Progress for the Xbox generation. Many evenings, as the boys hunkered down on the bed with her, she answered the hard questions and talked to them about what it meant to follow God into the future. Other times she spent one-on-one time with each of them to take their spiritual and emotional temperatures. Through honest conversations and spiritual encouragement, she not only helped them cope with the domestic heartache rattling their world but instilled God’s Word into her boys to prepare them for the challenges they faced in a public school environment.
Engage With Our Children
In a world where many forces vie for our children’s minds, hearts, and loyalties, it’s more important than ever that we engage with our youngsters. They need to feel our support and love as we take time to discuss important issues with them so they can clarify their own values and beliefs and articulate them with genuineness and intelligence to their friends. We need to pray with them for wisdom and discernment in an academic world that is frequently hostile to the Christian faith.
Yes, there is cause for concern. But as we look to God for wisdom and direction, there is also a reason for hope. Our very own children may indeed be the hope that is found in unexpected places. As we tackle our problems and encourage our children with God’s Word to see His provision, we teach them to be strong in their faith, that God is the conqueror, and that He will help us–and them– to overcome.
This 4th of July I pray that the words “In God We Trust” will be more than a motto we see on a dollar bill, or even a creed we share with our countrymen, but that it will be a belief that is emblazoned on our hearts so that regardless of what happens in our world or our country, we as Christians can continue to hold firm and say with conviction “In God We Trust.”
“In my view, the Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government ought to be instructed … No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people.” Noah Webster, Preface Noah Webster Dictionary, 1828
More George Washington quotes at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/g/george_washington.html#ozeWbhea38uP1cxu.99
*To readers who don’t live in the U.S.: Please bear with me this week as I recognize our national holiday by focusing on issues of national interest. Next week I will feature another powerful author interview on Avoiding 12 Relationship Mistakes.
