Do you SEE, what I see?
Do you SEE, what I see?
The Power of Discerning Perception
One Sunday morning at church, I was approached by some young students with a deep concern for their friend, Anna. Anna was a freshman in high school who had been attending our Wednesday night youth group for months. She came from a non-Christian home and had never been exposed to Jesus before coming to youth group. Just a week earlier, she had accepted Christ as her personal Savior and was hungry for the Word; she even decided to attend church on Sunday for the first time!
Upon arrival, she was greeted by one of the church greeters with a bulletin and a verbal “correction” on her clothing. This adult told Anna that she needed to go home and change her skirt, as it was too short and inappropriate to wear to church. Unfortunately, the enemy took this experience and had a field day with it – planting so many lies in the mind of this new believer. I can’t explain the emotional damage, level of rejection, and scarring distrust of adults this girl experienced because of that interaction. It took many weeks of love, acceptance, and building up of Anna’s identity in Christ before she even considered returning to church on a Sunday.
Why, as adults, do we often only see the outward behavior, appearance, or performance of young people? Why are we so quick to give our opinions, judgement, and correction? Aren’t we called to SEE these image bearers as cherished children of God, shaped, and formed by our Creator, given purpose, talents, beauty, and significance?
The root of the problem we face in relating to young people lies in our beliefs about them: their value, their place in the world, and their position as children of God. The critical words Anna received from the church greeter revealed how the adult viewed her. While the adult thought she was speaking “truth” and championing virtue and purity, instead she was used by Satan to steal joy, destroy hope, and kill safety in God’s family.
I know how wide the gap is becoming between each generation. I understand how, as adults, we truly do not understand the choices, behaviors and culture of young generations. However, Satan wants us to think we can’t relate, and we can’t reach out to them. But Satan is a liar! Our mutual humanity and desire for acceptance, security, and significance is the desire we ALL have.
Teens and young adults today are experiencing more confusion, rejection, anxiety, hopelessness, isolation, and insignificance than any other generation before. In his book Hurt: Inside the World of Today's Teenagers, Dr. Chap Clark, states, “In the early 2000s, the teenage social landscape was compromised of two distinct ‘worlds’ – the visible, where adults hold power (e.g., school, family, etc.), and the world of peers, described as the ‘world beneath.’ While during mid-adolescence, teens have not yet developed a well-formed identity (or "self"), they know they must present someone in the visible adult world. Each self is authentically them, but not wholly them (e.g., "I don't know who I am" is a common cry of this age group). Two decades ago, while juggling various "selves" around adults, they felt freer to be "themselves" alongside peers in the world beneath. Now, being relatively safe with peers has been shattered under the weight of the technologically mediated world. For most teenagers, the rapid cultural shifts that have taken place (e.g., the first iPhone was introduced on June 29, 2007) have made peer relationships increasingly just as perilous as the adult-controlled world. In every social setting, today's young have learned to protect themselves by living behind avatars.”
Isaiah 66:18 refers to how the Lord sees—“I can see what they are doing, and I know what they are thinking” (NLT). The Lord is discerning and sees our true self. He sees our outer world and our inner world. There is nothing hidden from God, and He still loves us, accepts us, protects us, and gives us purpose because of who He is and the payment He paid to have us in his family. The same is true for young people. God sees them, knows them, and loves them.
We aren’t called to “fix them;” we are called to fix our trust, faith in and reliance on Christ. As 2 Corinthians 4:18 states, “we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather we fix our gaze on the things that cannot be seen.
To love others well, we need the Holy Spirit to give us clear, discerning sight. We need to see others as Christ sees us. Mark 8:23-25 emphasizes this point: “Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man’s eyes, He laid His hands on him and asked, ‘Can you see anything now?’ The man looked around. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘I see people, but can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.’ Then Jesus placed His hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly” (NLT).
When you look at young people, do you see just a bunch of walking trees (badly behaving teens, confused young adults, a deceived generation), or do you see souls thirsting to know the love, acceptance, and value from their Creator? Ask God to open your eyes and help you see the next generation as He sees them.
Interested in learning more about how to help young people experience freedom in Christ? Check out the new GenFree website!