The Emotional Issues with Gen X and Gen Y

I'm not a psychologist, and I feel that qualifies me to talk about emotional issues.  Hey, Oprah and Maury Povich do all the time, so why not me?  Before I get into the topic at hand, I should start by saying this: I should never eat lunch alone, especially when I'm taking cold & allergy medication; I think that may have been the cause of this post.

Now on to the topic at hand.  It dawned on me the source of the emotional problems in my generation.  While I grew up in an age with MTV, rampant violence in entertainment, broken homes, overly high - or overly low - expectations, academic pressure and rampant materialism, I don't think that's the problem. No, I blame The Oregon Trail and the Choose Your Own Adventure book series.

"Seriously, ReallyAsa?  Oregon Trail and Choose Your Own Adventure? These were great learning tools, getting kids interested in learning history and decision-making skills."  True, they did teach those things, but they taught a whole lot more.

Let's start with The Oregon Trail.  The player, some eight-year-old in Mrs. Padenska's Red reading group, finishes his assignments early and gets to play on the computer for 1/2 hour.  He chooses to be the doctor, since he starts with the most money, and names the travelers after Gramma, PopPop, and his baby sister.  During the course of the game, he hunts and trades...and watches the entire party die of a high fever, dysentery and starvation.  Wow.  Some eight-year-old killed his entire family, all because he earned computer time for finishing his vocabulary worksheet early.

Onto Choose Your Own Adventure. That same eight-year-old rushes home with his latest installment from his book series. Mystery, intrigue, treasure - what's not to like?  It's like the other stories he's read, but he gets to be the protagonist AND gets to dictate the story by the choices he makes. It's like an arcade game in printed form. He chooses his path through the house, he navigates his way....and BAM! "You died."  What?! He goes back and tries again - same result.  Wow.

This post is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but there are some serious undertones.  While these tools taught problem-solving skills, the stakes portrayed were high and the decisions were left somewhat to chance.  There was little in the way of learning to weigh the options; it was more of a lottery approach.

Fast forward to high school, college, employment, marriage.  The lessons taught may have inadvertently paralyzed some from making decisions.  What if my college choice is a dud?  What if I choose the wrong career path?  What if someone better comes along?

We need to be cautious of the educational and entertainment choices we select in Choosing our Adventure of life.

Sin

If you are new to this discussion, over the past few months, I've revisited some of my beliefs. Here is some background to the discussion. The first topic was my view of the Bible, and that's chronicled here.

This next topic is probably about as basic, on the surface, as the Bible. As I delved into this topic, however, I discovered even more how vile, how insidious, how utterly corrupting my sin was. And I tasted afresh the power of the Cross.

First, I discovered anew what constitutes as sin. Oh sure, there are the "biggies," the 10 Commandments, or "love your neighbor" or something else from the Gospels. But in a very small passage from the book of Romans, buried in a section regarding interpersonal relationships, is the strictest definition of sin: "for whatever is not from faith is sin" (Romans 14:23 NKJV). As I meditated on this phrase, I began to see my own actions in a whole new light. How many times have I done something for my own glory rather than God's? How many times have I not done something I knew I should, or how many times did I do a good deed from the wrong motives? All constituted as sin.

Ah, but then I saw the cross in a whole new light. I began to realize that, on a day almost 2000 years ago, Christ's death atoned for my sin - past, present and future. I began to see my salvation in a whole new light. Instead of a prayer I prayed that got me "my ticket," I now began to truly be thankful for what Jesus' death meant. And as I continue to contemplate, I understand more and more the sacrifice made that Passover weekend so long ago.

I now have a stronger, more restrictive definition of sin. I want to please my Heavenly Father, and I will strive to meet His standards. Knowing I will fall short most times, however, I also know that I have been redeemed by Christ, and that brings deep thankfulness and joy to my soul.

My View of the Bible

In revisiting my beliefs, I found my journey first starting with the Bible. I'll be honest, I was a bit surprised by this being the first car in the train. As I reflect on this, I see why this makes the most sense.

I would have thought salvation, sin, redemption, the Deity of Christ, etc., would be first on my list of topics to explore. Instead, I pondered the Bible and how I approach the Scriptures. This now makes sense in my mind, as everything we know about God starts and ends with His Word. This is especially important as I explore prophesy and some of the so-called Charismatic gifts.

I've found that, in some ways, I've tried to make the Bible fit me, not allow the Bible conform me to the image of Christ. Much of that came from how I approach the Bible. If I don't read the Bible appropriately - and apply it correctly - it will lead to all sorts of unusual views, such as those that use poisonous snakes in worship services.

What I have learned is how to better read the Bible. I found that I was ignoring the totality of Scripture when I read the Bible. Sometimes I dismissed passages, sometimes subconsciously, because I didn't understand the tapestry woven into the scriptures. Sometimes, I would take a passage I really liked, but I didn't apply it correctly; this was especially true with promises I really liked. Sometimes I chose to ignore cultural or linguistic nuances, and that led to wrong interpretations.

What I now understand is that the Bible was written as a total package - the entire book is God's Word. I cannot discount the parts I don't like, I cannot "cherry pick" the verses I like, and I have to understand the context in which it's written. This has greatly expanded my vision of the Word, has deepened my love for the Bible, and has placed more weight on the Written Word as a trusted authority.

There are lots of good resources, such as "How to Read the Bible for All its Worth", and I would recommend something like this resource for further research, so I won't go into great depth here.

As I close, here is an acronym to help spur Bible study: SPECKA. I heard this a couple of months ago, and, while I've applied it informally for some time, I'm more conscious of it now. After reading a passage carefully, debrief using the following questions:

S - Sin. Is there a sin to avoid?

P - Promise. Is there a promise to claim?

E - Example. Is there an example to follow?

C - Command. Is there a command to follow?

K - Knowledge. Is there knowledge to store up in your heart and mind?

A - Application/Action. Is there an application or action to follow through?