A Generation That Knows God

I want my children to have a great experience of God in their lives… to know His power at work in their circumstances, and, even more than that, for them to sense His presence in their lives. Today I was struck by the words written of Israel, that after Joshua died, a new generation came up, one that had not known God’s work. (Judges 2:10) One vivid translation (The NET Bible) reads, “They had never personally experienced the Lord’s presence or seen what He had done…”

The preceding verses describe how Israel had remained faithful in the worship of God as long as Joshua and his contemporaries were alive. As soon as the last of his friends died, though – boom! – the floodgates opened and the new generation that didn’t know the Lord began to stray. In fact, it seemed like it was more of a sprint than a gradual straying. Almost immediately, they began to worship false gods.

I have had several amazing experiences that I can only explain by saying that God’s presence came upon me or the group of people with whom I was. As the old Gospel song says, “I know God is real for I can feel Him in my soul.”

But what for those who cannot feel, because they have not yet had an experience with Him?

What about my kids and their generation?

As I read this morning, I felt impressed by several things:

1. Nothing is more important than passing the faith on to the next generation… my kids should get my first and best efforts at it, and then I should do what I can to invest in others in the next generation.

2. I need to make sure that my relationship with the Lord is real, otherwise I will be passing on a stale set of values with no experiential power or authority. OK, I haven’t processed this to make it sound wondrously theological… but if it ain’t happenin’ in my life, I think my kids will see through that and my attempts at passing the faith will be in jeopardy.

3. God is “jealous” for His people – even for a generation that does not know Him. Even in those generations, the book of Judges reveals that God gave them leaders to mercifully (in spite of their rebellion) deliver them when their suffering became too great to bear. Of course, after their leaders delivered the people, the people went back to their false gods and immorality, but yet there was always at least a tiny group in each generation who had a relationship with God and who God called upon to do great things for Him.

Maybe these things are on my mind because we are in the thick of selecting a new Youth Director at the church that I serve, or maybe because my girls are teenagers and I want to make sure they’re rock-solid with the Lord before they fly out of our nest in a few short years. Or, maybe it’s because I’m seeing my two-year-old grow up before my eyes and I am wondering if he will at an early age trust in and decide to follow Christ as his big sisters have. I pray daily that he will. What kind of world will he live in? What will his generation be like? Will he be a Joshua? A Daniel? A Stephen?

Lord, please work in my life so my relationship with You continues to grow. May my kids and others in the next generations be able to see You at work in my life in a living faith, and may they be drawn not to the faith of a father, but to the living Lord who has come to bring them life and life more abundantly. May they forsake idols! May they follow You and love You with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength. Give me the privilege of being part of humbly, lovingly, yet passionately showing them the way. Amen.

A Funny Thing Happened at the Post Office Today

Christina, Dumisani and I visited our local post office today to renew passports and get one for Dumisani. We're preparing for our world tour.

While we were at the counter, we noticed a couple shuffle in and look around. They looked like they'd be lost at a Burger King, let alone the post office. The clerk looked up, noticed them and asked if they were there to apply for a passport. The man was. The clerk told them to pick up an application and then asked if the guy had proof of US citizenship. "I have a driver's license," the man said.

"No," said the clerk, "I'll need a birth certificate."

"A birth certificate?" the man asked.

"Oh no, he cain't git a birth certificate," the woman who was with the man blurted out, obviously distressed.

"Why not?" asked the clerk.

"'Cause he's from Arkansas." came the answer.

Do they not have birth certificates in Arkansas?