The Church Has Failed Our Youth
The Church at large, meaning all the churches in a general way, have failed our young people. Too many churches send young people out in the world after a game, a song, and a condensed Bible story. They are not throughly equipped, as Scriptures admonish.
I’ve had conversations with people about defunding Planned Parenthood (PP). Many young people that went to church are opposed to defunding them. They don’t see the problem with accessing their services.
Some cite that 3% lie that PP has been propagating. 3% of their services are abortions. Even if that were true, the number of abortions is around 375,000 per year. Many of towns around me would make up that population. Another way to think of it would be that number represents nearly one fourth of the population of the state of NH. 1 of 4.
How can I blame the church? The young people I’m talking to say that they were told not to have sex before marriage. “Ya, good” you say? Except that they go on to tell me their experience was demeaning and the baby was presented as the problem. They were not emphasizing all the negative consequences of premarital sex. In at least one case they had a young mom come in and explain that she wouldn’t them to be “in this position”. She was pregnant.
The baby is not the problem! Children are a heritage from the Lord. They are His reward. Jesus’ whole purpose for coming to earth was to redeem people. He left the splendor of heaven, was born in an animals’ shelter to a young couple, alone in the area. He grew up in a traditional Jewish home as a carpenter and taught the Scriptures. He knew His purpose at twelve and began His work at 30. In other words, He developed into the mission, as we all must.
When the time was right, He observed the Holy Days as the Lamb of God. He suffered terribly and then died a humiliating brutal death, so that as the One Son of God, Holy and perfect, He could stand in for us. He shed His blood for our sins.
His death seemed to the people of that day to be the answer to their problems. The Romans were persecuting the Jews. The economy was hard, racism and unrest was all around. Their perception was that if they had the Romans kill Jesus, then their problems would go away.
The same way that babies’ deaths are seen as the answer to problems today. It is a deceptive trick of the enemy of our souls. The child in the womb is a person. He or she has a mission, a special purpose that no one else has.
Each of the children killed by PP was special and killing him or her doesn’t solve a problem, but creates problems. We are created for love. It is unnatural to kill our own, even in self defense. So, when someone submits to abortion, a hardness happens. They must defensively, deny feelings of regret and remorse. This is remedied with forgiveness and grace, but most often the former is the default. Because we are wired for love and this is unnatural, it can develop into many self-sabotaging behaviors.
Why don’t the young people who went to church and vacation Bible schools know this? Why do the not value the lives of the children created, no matter what the circumstances of their conception? The failure of the church is evident.
If you are a youth or children’s church leader, are you instilling a higher regard for the lives of the children than the appearance of evil? I mean, premarital sex is definitely warned against in Scripture. If we sin sexually, we sin against our own body. But, if a baby is developing, a person that has a mission and has been intended for God’s purpose should be valued above any other aspirations.
Pregnancy is temporary. Abortion is final. Yes, even in case of rape! People are amazingly resilient. We can get through great trauma and accomplish great feats. I read stories frequently, of ten to twelve year old girls, who’d been raped delivering their babies and going on to continue to live their lives. Some parent, with help of course. Some give their baby a new family.
With proper counseling and support, they’ll be better off. First pregnancy abortion is tied to breast cancer and other physical risks. The developing mammary glands differentiate the cells in the last few weeks to produce milk. The abrupt change in hormones triggers negative physical effects.
The emotional toll is significant. She has been violated, through no fault of her own. If she submits to abortion, she has violated another. She will have guilt. I met a woman who at 14 was raped. In foster care, she was forced to abort, physically forced and she still felt guilty. Guilt differs from person to person, but it can keep them from fulfilling their purpose here on earth. This ought not be so.
The church must step up and teach cultural issues. Lives are at stake. Futures are at stake. God’s most Holy treasure is at stake.
What are your thoughts about what you were taught in church?