What’s Truth About This Generation?

Are young  adults today the new “Greatest Generation”?  According to a segment I saw the  other day on Fox News some seem to think so! 

The panel composed of both young adults and “older” adults, as well as men and women were discussing the change in attitude of young people transitioning from college in the work place.  The charge was made that young adults think they are better than they really are.  Smarter than they really are.  And work harder than they really do.

One young man on the panel admitted these charges might be so, but it was the parents’ fault!  They had not prepared their kids for the real world.  Worried that they might harm their self-esteem, they constantly reassured them that they were great!

Dr. Keith Ablow, a psychiatrist and a member of the Fox News Medical A-Team, believes  concerns are valid and the charges are too.   In an article entitled  “We Are Raising A Generation of Deluded Narcissists” he writes, “A new analysis of the American Freshman Survey, which has accumulated data for the past 47 years from 9 million young adults, reveals that college students are more likely than ever to call themselves gifted and driven to succeed, even though their test scores and time spent studying are decreasing.” 

         Whether Ablow and the “experts” are correct in their assessments, I leave for others to decide.  For my part, I have been blessed to be associated with some really fine young people.  A few years ago, realizing some the special needs of this age group I wrote a class book, “Transitions: Trusting God through the TwentySomethings” which can be ordered from Spiritbuilding Publishing.

http://www.spiritbuilding.com/Personal-Growth/Transitions.html

In the book, we covered everything from personal identity to time management to relationships and work.  However in the second chapter we address the issue of “My Identity” with the question “Who Am I, Lord?”  In the introduction to the chapter, we make this point. 

 Too often we generalize on specifics.  We  categorize people  demographically—by age, sex, or income. You are more than just a twenty-something.  You are more than your job, or your position or your income.

 In my day, many hippies dropped out of society trying to “find themselves” or “get inside themselves.””  Today we call it an “identity crisis.”  There is actually a game for sale on the ‘net called “Identity Crisis.”  Its sales pitch says,  “As Generation X settles down and Generation Y grows up, we all struggle with the same dilemma – stay cool or sell out?  Identity Crisis makes a game out of the meaning of life, packed full of self-deprecating humor that’s as much fun to read as playing the game itself. It’s Swingers vs. Wall Street, where players compete to become the richest or hippest, but can’t manage both.” 

For young adults that believe the Bible and are seeking to serve God, the answers to existence, significance and identity are easier to find.  And to understand.  The Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes provides ageless insight into the meaning of life and the reason for our being.  After experiencing everything life could offer, he gives this advice to young people.  “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them” (Eccl 12:1).

And then the ancient oracle concludes with this exhortation, “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”

For this generation, as well as all past and future generations, issues of identity and self-esteem are found in eternal Truth.  Manifest in the flesh through Jesus.  And revealed in Scripture.  Tomorrow we will speak to our true identity found only in Christ.

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman