children of the grave
We love our children and we want the best for them, the best food, the best education, the best career. But how are we to approach the most important question of all: “Is there a God?” What happens when they ask “Where do I come from?” and “What happens when I die?” Are you ready to look your child in the eye and say: “Honey, this is all there is; after life, nothing but a dusty grave.”
If we choose the humanistic route through life, we are in danger of letting in irrational existential fears that are then passed down through the generations. Not believing in anything beyond the grave is dangerous and ultimately destructive. Without the authority of a loving God ruling over us, authority in society erodes. Without the moral benchmarks established by the Bible, morality in society becomes confused.. And without the prospect of an eternal paradise to look forward to, life becomes nothing more than a series of joys that eventually fade into meaninglessness.
Some adults may choose atheism for themselves and accept that the end of life is the end of everything, but how does it feel to pass on that bleak perspective to your children? It is a painful and bewildering task to watch innocent minds succumb to that dark nihilism. Far better to send them to Sunday school and teach them that Jesus loves them no matter what and prepare them for the joy of eternal heaven.
By deliberately burdening children early on with a vision of futility, we put all the pressure on the here and now, and if here and now is all there is, they are encouraged to have bad habits. Nihilism leads to overcompensation in the present. The temptation to let the physical and the material rule our lives is no longer resistible, and more than that: the physical and the material must be perfect or life becomes unacceptable.
The vanity, selfishness and resulting insecurity that these ills bring can quickly take over the minds of vulnerable youth and before long the inevitable rot sets in. Sex, drugs, and the desire to be noticed and approved constantly become natural substitutes for faith. So why are we surprised when our children end up in dangerous situations? They will do anything to ease the burden of their boring and supposedly futile lives.
The cure is to renew your faith.
Over the past three centuries, science has gradually superseded faith as the basis of hope for humanity. Wonderful advances in technology, in the fields of medicine, communications, transportation, and entertainment, while welcome, have convinced us that science will one day provide a paradise on earth. But what is the evidence for this? Are the wars over? Is everyone on the planet being adequately fed and cared for? Are we living in peace with our environment? Although we have at our disposal countless devices that supposedly make our lives easier, we are increasingly aware of a growing insecurity. As we push God out of our lives and are forced to rely entirely on our own efforts to formulate any kind of meaning, we become confused about life’s priorities. Should work or family come first? Should we spend our lives helping others or helping ourselves? Most of us would like to be more altruistic, but we can’t find the time or the resources. And when it comes to right and wrong, how many times have you heard: “It doesn’t pay to be nice!” As a result of these mixed signals, we doubt everything and trust nothing.
Much of the blame for this distorted worldview lies with science falsely elevating itself beyond its purview. Science is not equipped to address assumptions about our origins, the inner workings of our minds, and the important question of moral purpose. Baseless science like evolution and the big bang belong to the field of theory; While evolution as an adaptive process is easy to understand, it has yet to produce definitive proof of how new species arise. And while the math behind the big bang may be strong, it’s not enough to explain what engine caused the big bang in the first place.
Science is not the path to an anxiety-free life (as anyone with a bad internet connection can attest!), but anxiety is actually exacerbated by science!
Are we as adults doing our duty as responsible mentors when we teach our children this grim philosophy, that they are nothing more than highly advanced apes created in a freak accident, part of an accidental universe destined only for grim extinction?
If you think this is a bad option, be glad there is an alternative.
Philippians 4: v6.7 Be anxious for nothing, but let your requests be known before God in all prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
By believing in a loving God, all the worries of the world and all our anxieties melt away. The earth was not created by random destructive forces (which in itself is a curious contradiction), but by the eternal version of ourselves that wants the best for us and made us out of love. to experience love, to learn to love better. Faith does not make life perfect. When we read the Bible, we find that none of God’s elect were perfect or had perfect lives, but they had a perfect relationship with God that was enough to guide them through the worst atrocities. From Adam to Moses, through David and Solomon, and the prophets that preceded Jesus, we meet believers who struggle with all the things we struggle with today, but with divine guidance they succeeded. Perfection is not found on the surface of things, but in the heart, because that is where God speaks to us.
John 14:27 Peace I leave you; I give you my peace. I do not give to you as the world gives. Not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Today’s society is afraid and is far from being at peace with itself. We have become fearful of our own ability. Few know the path of peace. There was a time when men were at peace until there was war; now there are fewer wars but no one knows peace. The root of this disk is easy to see. Everyone has their eye on something that does not exist, the comfort of money; that is the true myth. There is no peace in the world and there is no peace in a flourishing bank balance, only peace in God.
Cynics might argue that it is an illusion to place our trust in a mythical being, but there is no greater myth than the myth of economics. Believing in the power of interest rates and stock prices as the route to happiness and the salvation of humanity is a true delusion, because what do big companies produce besides a few billionaires at the top and employees? poor and an impoverished environment at the bottom? How much better to believe in the power of love. Our children grow up believing that debt is the most natural thing in the world and something worth striving for, that the only indication of its worth is the number on your bank statement or your credit score, and that unless they reach the pinnacle of their profession, they have failed.
And if they fail, they are not loved.
God would say the opposite, and the opposite provides a much more painless way to live.
So when you hear those vital questions coming from your children’s lips, tell them this, and you won’t be lying: Scientists can only see and understand 4% of the universe (stars, planets, galaxies, and their inhabitants). The other 96% is a total mystery. With a little imagination they can fill this void with whatever they want; with your dreams or premonitions; with ghosts; with angels and demons, fairies and the Easter Bunny, or whatever concoction they can conjure up from their mighty minds, and no one can take that away from them because no one knows any better. Then tell the story of God who loved us so much that he sacrificed his son Jesus for us. In this way we can gradually begin to rescue a confused and anxious generation from the dangers of agnosticism, atheism and dark nihilism, lift them out of the grave and fill them once more with God’s love, peace and the promise of their destiny. divine.