I have received a lot of feed-back, mostly positive, on the "Generation Killers" blogs... if you would like to add your thought, or have other "Killers" that would help; please let me know – I would love to post them.

More "killers" to come, but here are a few comments thus far:

11

The world needs to hear this so badly. I wish I had this standard set before me when I was growing up. Instead, I had this stupid idea that if it wasn't intercourse it wasn't sex. How rediculous the lies are that we believe.

Even into adulthood, I have struggled with not giving my heart away. I never learned how to protect myself. As soon as a guy gave me a little attention and made me feel wanted, I put my heart on a platter. Of course, it always came back chewed up and spit out.

I still struggle with what it looks like get to know somebody in a healthy way. I think I set myself up to avoid it out of fear of repeating past patterns.

I really wish somebody had taken the time to teach me how to guard my heart, before I made all those bad choices.

Posted on 8/27/2008 1:17:11 AM

12

We have hit entertainment and abortion as "Generation Killers" that we must take responsibility for as the Church. We have entertained this generation into numbness and have spiritually aborted millions of "Calls and destiny's"; remember – the natural always follows the spiritual.

The "Generation Killer" I get most kick-back on, the one that literally makes parents angry with me, some violent; the "killer" that most adults will not accept is Dating.

Dating has "Killed" more youth groups in America then any other issue! I have been the pastor of a few youth groups, lead international youth ministries and discipled thousands... every time we would gain momentum; kids praying, fasting and moving as one in the spirit – we would hit this wall called dating!

One person starts going out with another and then of course, they break up. What do you think happens to the unity of a youth group when two teen-agers hate each other? Groups of girls rally for their friend – boys gather around their buddy and the spiritual momentum is gone. One body, moving as one in the spirit, gone.

This may not seem like a big deal to you at all... I know it doesn't to most because of the resistance I get from parents on this. However...

The fruit of dating is divorce. The mentality develops that says, "I go out with this one for a while, try this one out; give my heart and emotions to someone that has NO right to have them"... young people, it's not enough to be a virgin when you get married, you cannot even give your emotions away! So, when I get married; when things get tough, I am out... the 67% divorce rate in the Church should wake you up!

We set high standards for our own boys and the ones we disciple. You are not allowed to enter a woman, with your tongue or anything else, until she is your wife! When you are in your 20's and possibly find that person God has saved for you; you will call and ask permission of their father to hold her hand or for that first kiss.

Our girls know they are protected and covered because of the same standards. Church, raise the bar for this generation and start bringing life, not death! We are their parents before we are their friends...

Lisa and I have our four teen-agers in the house, our 11 and 6 year old and ALL of their friends! On top of that we have a bunch of 20 something's that have moved here to be discipled after the World Race... let me just say, it is a very busy house and the grocery bill is scary!!

We love it and would have no other way – they teach us a great deal about life and how their generation thinks and we teach them how you limp thru as a parent just trying to get it right! Community living with our natural, blended and spiritual kids; I feel a good book coming...

As I mentioned in my last blog, entertainment is one of the ways we are killing this generation; iPods, computers, cable t.v., iphones; they have 24 hour access to information, pornography, video's, etc. In our Church's we have taught them to two extremes;  Either show NO emotion and sit there, don't embrace the fullness of God, what He has for us and what He expects – or, if you don't feel it, if your not emotional, if you don't speak in tongues, it's not God. We have made them bored or overemotional and taught them it is about them some how... this generation reeks of narcissism.

Another, more intense "Generation Killer" is Abortion. Abortion has stolen more of this generations' brothers and sisters then anything else in history. Why do we have this murder and why does it continue? The natural always follows the spiritual.

In the 90's I held hundreds of conferences with my ministry called Rock The Nations; countless parents, business people, pastors, etc would come to me at the end of the conference and say the same thing – "I love what you are doing with this generation; I was called as a young person to go to the nations, to give my life to something bigger. When I went to my pastor, parent, leader they always said the same thing; stay here, go to school, get a job and maybe go later".  Their own parents were consumed with fear, and religion, wanting them to be successful in world terms, more than life.

When I would take the time to go deeper, I would always find the same theme – pastors, youth pastors trying to build their own little kingdom; wanting, needing the big numbers so they looked good and had a bigger gathering. (I was rebuked by many pastors who said I was "Stealing" from their congregations when I would ask the kids to come get discipled or go with us to the nations)! Our only motivation was to send them back to their local church and community better, stronger, and greater. 

We as the Church have aborted millions of people's "Destinies" and "Calls" for our own selfish reasons... Many of these that were called are sitting in cubicles all around America, dying a very slow death; I personally know hundreds. When we can stop being what Paul calls "Teachers" and become "Fathers", and stop spiritually aborting our own, I believe, with all my heart, we can stop physical abortion in our land...

As adults, we must ask ourselves; what are we doing to empower this generation? What are we doing to pull the greatness out of them and make them successful in life? Maybe we should start with a harder question; what are we doing that is "Killing" this generation?

It's amazing to me how quick we are, especially as Christians, to judge or criticize the world. Movies, music, abortion, tattoo's... what we don't realize is that we are to blame!

Entertainment is a good place to start. We have entertained or bored our Christian kids to sleep. In most "Charismatic" Church's you visit, you can find loud music, lights flashing, turn tables scratching, and big screens showing video's... in our youth groups we have fuse ball tables, pool tables, loud music pumping to try and pull in and build big youth groups – it's not about the kids any more, it's about how many we have coming!

What ever you birth these kids into, is what you will get. If we are drawing them in with the same thing the world is using; that's what we get. I train and disciple hundreds of American kids each year – they are bored because they are boring and they know very little about kingdom living or the Fear of the Lord! Entertainment is killing this generation... wonder why only 4% come to our church's – if I can go to the movies or a rock concert and get the same thing, I choose the rock concert!

Other "Generation Killers" we will dive into; abortion, (we abort "destiny, or "Calls' in the church by building our own kingdoms, so the world has abortion that is killing millions) dating, (Number 1 killer of youth groups in America), initiation, (never initiated our young people, so they try and initiate themselves).

One of the things we must do is create moments with our kids. This is Tyler and I in Swaziland holding "Baby Moses" Tyler will remember, no matter how far he wonders, forever... create moments with your kids, together...

We are preparing for the first G42 summit this week. Andrew Shearman, Seth Barnes and about 25 others are coming in for an intense few days of seeking the Lord, ministering to each-other and acting on what God is asking us to do... we know He has called us to plant Church's – we have a few in Africa now and are gearing to plant a "G42" Church here in Colorado Springs this fall.

We also have the mandate of James 1:27 – we must serve the widow and orphan. Around the world we know what that means; 148 million orphans, babies with no mom or dad deserving the same opportunity as all of us. Women, all alone, are trying to raise families on $2 a day! The World Race and other expressions are helping us do this...

Here in America the widow and orphan are the single mothers and their children abandoned by worthless fathers. 40 some % of all birth-certificates in America not having a fathers name on them – 77% of inner-city kids with NO father's name on their birth-certificate. We have an epidemic in our own back-yard.

Some of the young people coming to the summit this week want to plant "girl's homes" in Seattle. (Homes for girls left on the streets in downtown Seattle) A few of them want to start coffee shops in Europe to minister to the up and coming generation; we will send some to Africa to serve Pastor Gift, others will move to the slums of the Philippines and Philadelphia...

This week is all about God birthing "Kingdom" in the hearts of the next generation. This week is about us as fathers and mothers hovering over them and empowering these young people to just do it. It is a significant time for all of us...

Lisa and I just returned from training our new October squad, 53 amazing people that we will launch this October in the Philippines.  The Holy Spirit was very gentle and really took these young people to a deep place; we are excited about what the Lord is doing with this generation and are humbled that we get to play such an amazing role in their lives. I will get you some pictures and stories from these guys soon; you will love them!

From Atlanta we flew to Reno, Nevada. One of Lisa's mentors of 15 years asked us to do her son's wedding... looking down over Lake Tahoe we spoke the truth about covenant, commitment and how the Lord looks at marriage; it was one of the richest weeks of our lives.

Raising up the next generation – establishing covenantal family – and doing all this with my bride.

There are three epidemics that are destroying this generation – I call them "Generation Killers" Entertainment, Abortion and Dating. If you are interested I can elaborate on each one… but sports is what I call a "Prince" or small god that we put in front of the living God!

Sports are like education or T.V. it has become idolatry and we have made it one of our gods. If you don't believe me go to a youth soccer game, baseball game or any other athletic event where kids are playing and parents are on the sidelines; it's beyond scary! Screaming – fighting – "adults" trying to re-live their child-hood through their children… it is an embracement and tragedy!

I have coached youth football for seven years and just took another team that starts next week; I love the interaction with the kids! I am coaching my son Caleb and 20 other 6^th grade boys. Eager, pumped up and teachable – it is one of the highlights of my life. But, I am also preparing myself to for the onslaught, amazingly mostly from the mothers! Being cussed out because Johnny didn't play enough; spit on, slapped – I have seen and experienced it all; and I'm a great coach!! (This is Michael a couple years ago - warrior in the making)!

I do believe we must encourage our kids to play sports. It teaches them team work, integrity; my boys will knock a kids head off with a tackle and then help them up, with a slap on the butt, and tell them what a great job they are doing… great life lessons. But, to avoid the idolatry that it can become, even for me, we allow our kids to play one sport at a time, choose two sports a year, and they have to give us three weeks out of each summer to travel to a 3^rd- world country to serve the poor and the orphan – that is our accountability system; for all of us!

Caleb, our 11 year old was in the state championships this past weekend for baseball. He is on the number one team in the state and is a natural catcher. We flew in from Nicaragua and received the call the next morning. "Caleb has been hit by a fast ball and broke his hand; the bone is sticking out of the side of his right hand"! We jumped in the car, drove, very fast, the 4 hours up to Steamboat Springs, CO. Before Lisa and I left, we gathered the family together and prayed for his immediate healing – we all felt something as we prayed.

As we pulled up to the park, Caleb was returning from the emergency room… one of the parents on the team is a doctor; he said "I have never seen anything like it. His bone was sticking out, I know it was broken! The x-ray came back negative and his hand is normal! NOT EVEN A BRUISE - I think he can play"! The parents of the team were speechless. He played the rest of the tournament, another four games, and was the talk of every parent of every team…

God is the God of sports, so go play your guts out and expect miracles!