Are your children 'still' a heritage of the Lord?

Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is His reward. -Ps 127:3.

Look around in your family and in your neighborhood. Behold your children, their children and everybody's children. Do they still look like they are an 'heritage of the Lord' and 'His reward'? Observe the Millennials or Gen Y (born between 1980 and 1994/96), Zillennials or Gen Z (1997-2012) and Gen A / Alpha (2012 - 2025?) who are today aged 40 and below. Are they not hugely different from the generations prior to them?

The world has taken them down and has taken them over - technology is ruling them, worldly wealth is driving them, and temporal comforts (and luxuries) are blinding them. They have left behind ethics, loyalty and honesty; they have thrown to the wind tender sentiments, genuine love and heartfelt emotions; they care little about time, people and relationships. There is no 'future' for them - they live here, now and for the moment. Sadly, the reality is not different in Christian homes. Christian children are the most pampered, spoilt and loathsome of the lot.

1. They own one or more gadgets that keeps them isolated from their surroundings

2. They want top-end models of these gadgets that cost their (poor) parents a fortune

3. They want to own costly bikes, cars and jewelry, funded by their parents in most cases

4. Earning folks empty their money on long trips, gourmet food and wasteful entertainment

5. They become emotionally disabled, physically inert and socially lethargic

6. They are inseparable from their smartphone or a tab or laptop or TV

7. They have become addicted to the social media, video games and pornographic content (falsely named as entertainment)

8. They live in a world of their own as an 'avatar', different from the reality they are in

9. Augmented reality, Virtual reality and Metaverse are technologies that keep them tied to their room, the bed and the pillow

10. They hate being advised, corrected, or punished for their misdeeds and sinful activities

11. They raise their voice against parents, elder siblings and teachers (and some even raise their hand to hit them or even murder them, in some cases)

12. They don't address their parents respectfully, don't heed to their instructions or obey them anymore

13. They don't care about visitors, relatives or church elders that visit their homes

14. They are not satisfied with the food at home; they keep buying or ordering food from outside to feed their gluttonous bellies

15. They sell their virginity for petty things as doing laundry, cooking a delicacy or making their bed

16. They dress shabbily, exposing their private body parts and exhibiting themselves shamelessly in the name of personal liberty and right (often questioning why others look at them lustfully)

17. They care little for Church, Bible and prayer

18. They migrate to Canada, USA, Australia or other developed countries, leaving behind their parents to the forces of nature and society (who have sacrificed their own lives to feed, clothe and educate these same children)

19. They urge their parents 'to visit' their homes abroad for short stints 'to stay with them' only to babysit and do chores while the children themselves pursue their 'dreams'

20. They are addicted to evil habits - drinking, smoking, drugs and promiscuous sex

21. They live an openly gay life or support LGBQAIO+ lifestyle that is totally evil and sinful; they are influenced by the evil society that recognizes this abominable lifestyle and are confused about their own gender and identity

22. They believe the evolution theory and deny that God created everything; in fact, they don't believe in God; they don't want to because they don't want to be accountable to their Creator

23. They actively take part in the New Age lifestyle practices like yoga, karate and infinitheism not fully understanding what they are up to

24. They live together with their BF / GF for convenience purposes and breakup with them when their selfish wishes, whims and fancies are not met with to their satisfaction

25. They get married to any person of their choice giving little thought to family-building and lasting relationships

26. They divorce their spouse for petty reasons and are eager to get remarried to repeat their folly

27. With little or nothing to present as credentials, they build a hype around themselves about their education, job and social status

28. They are ready to earn quick money by hook or by crook compromising on ethics and truthfulness

29. They switch jobs frequently, always looking for a higher remuneration, throwing loyalty to the winds

30. They sleep late into the night and feel lazy to get up early - mostly rising out of their beds by noon time

31. When parents or others enter their space, they consider it as invasion of their privacy

32. They have no reading habits, hobbies or healthy social interactions

33. They take everything for granted and have an attitude of entitlement

34. They want to be recognized by the society and be awarded for their talents at an early age even before they understand what popularity is

35. They quickly throw the blame on others when they fail (instead of owning the blame by doing an introspection)

36. They are not transparent in their activities, keeping their parents and elders in the dark as to what they are doing or what they are up to

37. They like, follow and subscribe to everyone or everything that resonate with their feelings giving no attention to the source, author or the contributor of the content

38. They love animals, pet them and spend for them huge money; loving people, helping the needy or serving the society is none of their concerns

39. They score low marks, throwing the blame on teachers and parents (and God?), while they don't take efforts to study and do well in exams

40. They don't take responsibility of tidying their space, making their bed or folding their clothes

41. They make public spaces their own and keep shouting in street corners and celebrate birthdays in by-lanes, buses and theaters

42. They keep speaking extensively four-letter filthy words and socially abominable language in their conversations unmindful of the people around them

And, many a times, parents are to blame for such anti-social behavior of the children.

Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it. -Prov 22:6

Dear parents, God has trusted you with children. It is your responsibility to bring them up in the fear of the Lord and lead them to Salvation in Jesus Christ. Don't transfer this responsibility to your Pastor, Sunday school teacher or Youth leader. And the father is doubly responsible as he is the federal head of the family. Don't let your children go to hell!

Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. -Luke 23:28.