The Gadget Generation

Today I read an article written by a Professor Patty Lamberti at Loyola University’s School of Communication entitled Tech Savants, Five Things You Need to Know About the Gadget Generation.  She wrote about her first hand experience with a student population that were largely enslaved to technology.  The five things listed were: 1) They are blind to technology etiquette.  2) Multitasking is hurting their brains.  3) They dislike conversing face to face.  4) Their only news comes from Facebook. and, 5)  Life without technology leaves them depressed and anxious.

This professor convinced a communications class to give up social networking, emailing, web surfing, and texting for 48 hours and then write a paper about their experience.  According to their papers, they could live without the Internet in general.  But 48 hours without Facebook was torture.  The words addiction, depression, withdrawal, and lonely appeared in every paper.  Telephone use was not against the rules but only a few called friends or family.

I am trying to imagine what this trend is doing to family life.  What will its impact be on marriages that are already under attack?  What are our children learning about having a healthy relationship that requires open communication and consideration for other people?  How will they relate to God which requires quieting oneself, study of the Bible, and listening to Him?  Parents, do you see my concern? What can you do at home to counter this?

What to Give Jesus for Christmas

This week I received a text from one of our daughters, “I need a Cmas idea for you!”  This is a short way of saying, “Dad, what would you like for Christmas?” 

It is wonderful having a daughter who wants to express her love for me, her Dad through a gift involving some measure of personal sacrifice.  However, like my parents, I am in a position of life where there is nothing I really need.  From a financial perspective, I would rather my daughter use her resources to pay down on their debt or buy something they need or save for a rainy day.  Her needs are greater than mine.  But to refuse her an opportunity to give is akin to refusing her expression of love.

If you were to ask Jesus, “what would you like for Christmas?”, how do you think He might answer?  I don’t think there is anything in the world of technology He needs.  He is far beyond cell phones, smart phones, and the like.  There is nothing to buy to make life more comfortable for Him.  And yet, do you think that God wants to deny us opportunity to express our love for Him through more than words?

In Matthew 25, Jesus spoke of those who gave to help the hungry, the thirsty, the poor, the sick, and the prisoners.  He stated that gifts of this nature were equivalent to giving to the Lord himself.  It is as if the most notable way to give to the Lord in a tangible and physical way is to help those who have real needs.

It is not hard to find someone with very real needs.  There are many in our communities who fit the categories listed in Matthew 25.  Individually, we are not able to make huge gains in ocean of needs, but we can make a difference in a life or in a family. 

Why not ask your heavenly father just like my daughter asked her earthly father, “what would you like for Christmas?”  I know he will show you.

Fixing Fence

Nancy and I spent Labor Day at my daughter and son-in-law’s farm in South Dakota.  It was a great day as we were able to see our only grandchild as well as spend time with our two daughters and one son-in-law.  Bryan was in the process of building fence to prepare for taking in sheep for a few months this winter.  His opportunities to work on this fence are limited so he wanted to use this day to make some headway.  I was delighted to be able to work with him.  I packed my leather gloves and work boots and was blessed with a beautiful day to spend working outdoors at something I have not done for over thirty years.

I would guess most of you could not imagine fixing fence as enjoyable.  Dirt, barbed wire, digging holes, filling them in, tamping the dirt tight around the pole – fun, right?  But really, I had fun.  It was good building something that is visibly an improvement at the end of the day.  But what made the project fun was more who I was working with than what I was doing.  I enjoy working with my children and helping them make improvements in whatever is important to them. 

God said that when he made man, he made man in His own image.  This does not mean a physical image as God is invisible.  When He created the human race, He put within us certain propensities that are consistent with His nature.  Now sin messed many of these up to a large degree, but we are still made in His image.  I can’t help but wonder if my tendency to enjoy helping my children even when it involves getting dirty and sweaty isn’t a partial picture of God’s nature.  I truly believe that God enjoys helping us in what we are interested in – at least as long as our interests are not sinful. 

We quit about five o’clock.  The south fence in this pen was erect and straight.  I had helped and felt good for contributing to the benefit of my family in South Dakota.  I wonder how much joy God experiences when He helps us.



God's Warning System

This past Friday, our community weathered a tremendous storm.  I was told the winds exceeded 100 miles per hour.  They destroyed large trees, grain bins, and machine sheds.  Roofs were damaged and a few cars lay under the weight of tree trunks.  Yet, as I understand the facts, no one was injured during the storm, thanks mostly to appropriate warning sirens and radio reports urging people to take cover.

It is times like this that we especially appreciate the investment in a warning system.  When the system was designed and installed, it was during a time of calm.  You can be sure the sirens were not lifted to their resting places when winds howled and clouds threatened.   They were installed in balmy weather and were tested during times when no danger was pending.

For those who are listening, God also has provided warning to protect his people.  The Bible is full of warnings.  1 Corinthians 10:11 tells us that the stories of the Bible were written for our warning.  Paul tells us that if we think we are standing firm, we had better be careful.  In Galatians, Paul again gives warning when he tells us not to be deceived.  Just as a farmer harvests the grain that he plants, we also will experience the consequences of our decisions.  Remember, each of us has ability to make choices but we cannot choose the consequence of the choices.  A warning alerts us of the consequences hopefully to alter the decision process.

To be of value, a warning must not only be heeded; it must be heeded in proper time.  We could have waited too long to go the basement during this past storm.  We also can wait too long to follow the counsel of God as given us in scripture. 

For many of us, to escape a violent storm as we just experienced, it requires hearing the siren first.  In the same way, a day will come when it will be too late for people to heed the warnings of God and turn from their sinful and self-centered ways in order to follow his ways and walk in his path.

As you read scripture, pay attention to the warnings.  God may be slow in fulfilling His warning, but He does not cry wolf.

Teach Our Children to Love

I have an electronic photo album on my desk that scrolls family pictures from various events for my viewing.  There are times that I find myself fixated on the screen flashing back to family times together, longing to spend time with those very close to my heart, but physically a fair distance across the country.

The pictures remind me not just of my family and friends but of special events with them.  I have pictures of my daughter’s wedding, my other daughter’s graduation, family vacations in the Rocky Mountains and gatherings around the kitchen table.  We have camping pictures, pictures with grandparents, pictures of Christmas celebrations, and pictures of hugs and laughter.  The common element in all the pictures is the smiles on the faces of family enjoying each other. 

I know how very blessed I am and that not all share similar experiences in life.  This saddens me, especially when I minister to needs of people who struggle in relationships and life in general. 

Proverbs 10:1 says, “A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son grief to his mother.”  I am reminded by this verse how much of either joy or grief that can dominate one’s life because of the decisions of children.  May I add, that may be more true of adult children than small children.

I am not a believer in spiritual formulas that guarantee success if applied with exactness.  Rather, I believe there are spiritual principles that God gives us in his word that generally lead to predictable results, some in the immediate time frame and some over a more extended period of time.

One such principle is found in Hebrews 10:24.  This is normally not a verse used in the context of raising children, but it has direct application none the less.  This verse says, “Let us consider how we may encourage one another on toward love and good deeds.” 

It is clear that we need to think or figure out how to encourage others towards the end of love and good deeds.  This is the training part of child rearing but it is not formula based or task oriented.  The goal of this instruction is to help others, our children in my context, learn to love and to give.  I don’t know if this is possible without demonstrating with our own love and sacrifice.  It is so true that we teach much more effectively by the way we live than through words only.  No one is quicker to pick up hypocrisy and inconsistency than a child.

When we encourage we give courage.  Children need encouragement to do what is right.  The media, advertising, and entertainment pull our children towards a life of self-gratification, which is a nice term for selfishness.  Love is just the opposite.  We need to demonstrate love before our children so they can learn the joy that giving returns to us.

We make the world a better place one life at a time and one family at a time.  I wish to encourage you to encourage others, especially our younger ones to love and to give.  The rewards are pretty special.