Our young people are growing up in the lap of luxury and leisure, yet they are miserable, empty, and bored. What's happened to make them weary of life so soon? Let me venture the following answers:
1. Too much luxury: We just plain have too much and our affluence is killing us. We would be better off if we were not so well off. People who have everything they want are soon satisfied with nothing they have. It would help us if we gave away a lot of what we have, but human nature being as it is, we find it hard to give away a thing once we get it. We tend to keep everything for ourselves and spend it selfishly. The result? We have more luxury and more misery than ever before. Luxury never develops tough people. It makes us soft and unable to stand up to life.
2. Too little responsibility: Young people don’t have enough demands made of them. Humanity was made to work. Even the Bible talks about working six days and resting one. When we have too much leisure time on our hands, we get bored. Rather than finding something useful to do, people with too much leisure time seek an endless round of pleasures and thrills to fill the vacancy in their hearts. It takes more pleasure, more thrills, and greater amusement parks to satisfy us every year. Pleasure is like drinking salt water. It never quite quenches your thirst. If you drink enough of it for a long enough time, it will kill you.
3. Too many experiences: By the time most kids get into junior high school they have been everywhere, seen everything, and done everything. The result is they are so sophisticated that they cannot be satisfied with the simple things of life. They have seen and done so much in the terms of entertainment and travel that they are bored with normal life. There is nothing left to excite them. So they turn to drugs and alcohol for a new thrill or an escape. They are in many instances spoiled brats who have had too much too soon, and the results are all too sad!
4. Too few examples: Young people have too few good models to imitate. Their heroes are immoral, indecent, and oftentimes abnormal celebrities and money-grabbing athletes. Their political leaders are self-seeking, mealy-mouthed opportunists who sell their souls to the highest bidder. Their parents are insecure, mate-swapping social climbers who are so wrapped up in their own problems that they can’t be bothered with their kids.
The tragedy is that many young people think they are tired of life. In reality, they have never experienced the life that God can give. If they knew the abundant life that he can give, they would want to preserve it, protect it, extend it,…and live it.