There is a generation….

History repeats itself over and over again. As one generation grows from youth and then dies, the gains or losses they experienced don’t transfer to the next. It’s intuitive to see that people learn most from first hand experience which is unfortunate. I’m a history buff and World War 2 history in particular. There is a term coined for the people in America that fought and won WW II: The Greatest Generation. What made them “great”?

As I have reflected on that question I am of the mind that what made them great was not because they won the war. If it was limited to just winning, then the success of the United States the following 60 years would have been fleeting. Instead I believe that generations greatness was found in personal character built on morals that are immutable. Were they born with that or was it built from the ingredients of the moment, the time period they lived in? Again, fairly intuitive answer is they built it, each of them that were called to serve their country, one at a time through labor, sacrifice, and conviction. Put that together and in the face of world domination from two dictators the nation collectively said “This is not right!” and then were willing to do what was required based on that conviction.

Here we are 70 years from when WW II started and what are the ingredients of our time period, this era? I am gravely concerned what prosperity in the US has taught, or more correctly stated lulled, people of this time into. Character is mocked in favor of “group think”. Labor is marginalized in favor of a handout. Conviction is forgotten as the morals no longer matter.

Proverbs 30:11 begins four sayings from Agur about “there is a generation”:

• Disrespects parents and authority (v11)
• Self-righteous with no morals (v12)
• Arrogant (v13)
• Prey on the poor (v14)

And how many of these mark our present time and era? I dare say all four of them. A survey of teachers in 1945 asked what were the biggest problems in the classroom with top responses such as speaking out of turn, cutting in line, and running in the halls. Fast forward to 1995 and the same survey has responses of teen pregnancy, guns in school, drug and alcohol abuse. Why so much change in just 50 years? I’ll leave that for you to reflect on and find the answer for yourself.

What kind of generation do you want to be part of? A generation that builds character or watches it wither before your eyes? The greatest gift I can give the next generation is this: there are morals and character worth fighting for and that the greatest sense of accomplishment is found in knowing you’re right and willing to stand for it regardless of what “other people” think.

Find truth and build inner character based on conviction. It really does make a difference.