Day 89: One Generation

Today's Reading Judges 1-2

"...another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done..."

Judges 2:10

I along with some other wonderful workers have been getting ready for a Seder meal at our church. We have worked very hard to make this a wonderful event for our church, especially our children. We have decorated, worked on an interesting program, are cooking up a storm and have prepared crafts in order to teach our children about Passover and Holy Week.

We want to let our children know who God is and what God has done for us. It is holy work we are doing. It is important work. We cannot make our children have faith in or love for the LORD, but we can tell the stories over and over again.

And so we do.

The effort is worth it. It doesn't matter that we could be doing something else with our time. Teaching our children the faith is our primary concern, because the faith is only one generation away from extinction.

The faith is only one generation away from extinction.

And here's something that makes the passing of our faith even more difficult. Faith is not taught, it is caught. And there are no guarantees that the next generation will come to faith, in fact, the opposite is more likely.

According to the book of Judges, when the next generation does not know the LORD or what God has done, they turn to evil and idolatry. This makes God angry and God turns aside from them. Life goes down the tubes. The next generation faces huge possibilities of distress.

Thankfully, the LORD raises up people who "save them out of the hands of the raiders," those who would pillage our children's souls. "Yet, they (might not) listen."

Ah...good ole free will.

Judges talks a lot about good leadership and what a difference it makes. But it talks more about human nature--our distractability, our fickle nature, our bent toward disobedience.

In many ways, one generation is not much different from the previous or the one to follow.

Lord, help us.

Lord, preserve us.

Lord, keep us.

Thankfully, God's nature does not change. God's focus is sharp, God is faithful and God's bent is toward loving us.

For all God has done, I am trully grateful.

Thanks be to God.