Last night my girls were invited by a friend to attend a service at a local youth retreat. They are close friends and were excited to go with her to this service. This morning I asked them about last night. My 13 year old explained how it was okay and they talked about some things they talk about at our church's youth group. She didn't sound too thrilled so I asked her to give me more details. She said, "Well, they brought up some subjects, but they didn't really SAY anything about them. They didn't talk to anyone specifically or say anything that would really help with those issues. I like that at our youth group, they don't talk to us that way."
After some more questioning, I got to what she was trying to say. They watered down their message. At the age of 13, she didn't want to hear about anxiety. She wanted to hear what the word of God says about how to deal with anxiety. She didn't want to be "babied" by the word, she wanted the hard hitting truth.
How many of us, as adults, are okay with being babied by the word? How quickly are we offended by those who speak the hard hitting, unadulterated TRUTH of God's word? Do we crave true intimacy with God? Intimacy requires time spent together. It requires honesty and openness to feedback. It requires us to be willing to allow God to speak to us as adults.
Have you ever had to confront someone on an issue and they responded like a toddler? They yell, pout, and then give the silent treatment simply because you challenged them on something. How often do we respond to God in the same way when He points out an issue in our lives. By the way, He usually uses other people to help point out those issues. Ouch!
So Church, it's time for us to grow up. Stop being offended by your pastor (and others) who speak the truth of God's word. Stop looking for churches and leaders who will baby you. Grow up. There's a whole generation following behind who need us.
My 13 year old gets it. Do you?
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