Latest / Challenges of Faith Radio Program / What does your future look like? Ep 3406

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What does your future look like? Ep 3406 · Challenges of Faith Radio Program

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  Speaker 1: Welcome back to Challenges of Faith radio program. I'm Gary McCance.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for joining here on Pondering Time. Yes, Pondering Time.
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  Speaker 1: I know you're ready for episode 3406, Pondering Time. You know,
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  Speaker 1: today's young adults, maybe that's you, are growing up in
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  Speaker 1: a culture that's marked by And the question you've got
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  Speaker 1: to ask and answer in your own life, are you
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  Speaker 1: growing up in a culture marked by uncertainty? Because you
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  Speaker 1: have a lot of them that are delaying marriage or
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  Speaker 1: avoiding responsibility and struggling to find purpose in life and
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  Speaker 1: really questioning whether, in fact, adulthood is something to embrace
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  Speaker 1: or be afraid of. There was a study done by
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  Speaker 1: researchers from Auburn University, and they found that college students
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  Speaker 1: today express very, very great fear about adulthood than the
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  Speaker 1: previous generations. And the long-term study that those researchers did,
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  Speaker 1: it suggests that many younger Americans are not simply anxious
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  Speaker 1: about specific problems. What they're anxious about is growing up
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  Speaker 1: all together. And the same researchers pointed to economic uncertainty
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  Speaker 1: and social pressures and social media and fears about the
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  Speaker 1: future as possible causes behind their growing anxiety. And again,
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  Speaker 1: maybe that's you. The lead researcher, April Smith, she said
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  Speaker 1: that the findings were not surprising. She said that if
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  Speaker 1: people perceived the future as increasingly uncertain, it would make
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  Speaker 1: sense that growing older might feel more daunting than it
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  Speaker 1: did for previous generations. You have a lot of young
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  Speaker 1: adults that's really looking for hope in the wrong places,
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  Speaker 1: and maybe there are some older adults doing it, only
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  Speaker 1: you really know them. But the uncertainty facing today's generation
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  Speaker 1: is real for their life. She said that while they
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  Speaker 1: search for security, identity, and purpose, countless people are looking
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  Speaker 1: everywhere except to the one who provides lasting hope. And
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  Speaker 1: maybe that's somebody in your life that you think provides
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  Speaker 1: lasting hope, but you've got to remember now, feet of clay,
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  Speaker 1: whether it's a guy, lady, lady, or a guy, one
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  Speaker 1: day their name is going to be called. But a
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  Speaker 1: recent Gallup survey shows that shift. For example, if you
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  Speaker 1: go back in time in 2013, 75% of Americans believed
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  Speaker 1: society would benefit if more people were religious. And today
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  Speaker 1: that number has fallen to 65% with the sharpest decline
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  Speaker 1: among adults aged 18 to 34. Maybe that's where you
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  Speaker 1: are in your age range. Fewer than half of younger
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  Speaker 1: adults now believe religion has a positive influence on society.
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  Speaker 1: And you know I always interject when I hear about religion.
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  Speaker 1: You know, religion is something you got to do. Christianity
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  Speaker 1: is Christ, a person. And as biblical truth is increasingly rejected,
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  Speaker 1: many are left trying to answer life's biggest questions on
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  Speaker 1: their own. Think about it. That researcher, lead researcher, April Smith,
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  Speaker 1: she indicated that You know, the young adults are searching
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  Speaker 1: for meaning through success, entertainment, relationships, politics, or social media.
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  Speaker 1: It's just not young adults. You know it's true. But
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  Speaker 1: you also know that it's true that those things cannot
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  Speaker 1: provide lasting peace. There's no amount of comfort, entertainment, wealth,
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  Speaker 1: or online validation can remove the uncertainty that comes from
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  Speaker 1: a life disconnected from, you ready for it, biblical truth.
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  Speaker 1: You've got to remember now that disconnection weakens confidence and
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  Speaker 1: it discourages responsibility. And guess what else it does? It
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  Speaker 1: creates fear about your future. And as a result of that,
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  Speaker 1: you notice how it's leaving many people spiritually adrift. Think
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  Speaker 1: about it. Look around followers of Christ. Even young believers
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  Speaker 1: today face constant temptation to stay quiet. You know, avoid
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  Speaker 1: that conflict. blending culturally or retreat rather than actively living
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  Speaker 1: out their faith. But you know how the scripture calls
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  Speaker 1: you and I to exhibit endurance, courage, maturation, and steadfastness
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  Speaker 1: as the gospel is proclaimed? And the reason is because
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  Speaker 1: the answer to an anxious coach is not more distraction.
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  Speaker 1: You know what the answer is? I know you know.
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  Speaker 1: The gospel of Jesus Christ. Think about it. You got
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  Speaker 1: that fear and that uncertainty. But it also provides opportunities
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  Speaker 1: for you as followers of Christ to point young people
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  Speaker 1: to the only lasting source of hope. You know what?
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  Speaker 1: It doesn't have to be just young people. It can
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  Speaker 1: be middle-aged, older ones. Remember now, the gospel alone answers
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  Speaker 1: the question that a lot of people are already asking, like,
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  Speaker 1: why am I here? Don't you know? Why am I here?
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  Speaker 1: Matter of fact, it reminds me of a story I
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  Speaker 1: haven't shared in a while. You know I haven't. There
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  Speaker 1: were some ships set out to harbor from New York
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  Speaker 1: City on a quiet mission. The captains of those ships
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  Speaker 1: were told not to tell anybody where they were going.
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  Speaker 1: When they got out to CSEA, there was a bad
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  Speaker 1: storm which caused the ships to be separated from each other.
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  Speaker 1: Ship number one looking out at ship number two at
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  Speaker 1: a distance asked the question, where are we? Ship number
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  Speaker 1: two responds back to ship number one, where'd you come from?
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  Speaker 1: Ship number one says, we don't know. Ship number two
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  Speaker 1: then asks ship number one, where are you going? Ship
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  Speaker 1: number one responds, we don't know. Ship number two finally
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  Speaker 1: says to ship number one, if you don't know where
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  Speaker 1: you came from, you don't know where you're going. Makes
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  Speaker 1: no difference where you are. Why are you here? Is
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  Speaker 1: there a purpose in life? Do you even know what
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  Speaker 1: happens after death? And a further question would be, can
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  Speaker 1: you have peace in this uncertain world? Think about those
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  Speaker 1: young people out there that's facing decisions that's going to
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  Speaker 1: set the direction of the rest of their lives. And again,
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  Speaker 1: maybe that's you. But you got many of them that's
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  Speaker 1: making those decisions in a vacuum with no spiritual knowledge
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  Speaker 1: or input at all. Think about it. Especially the older people.
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  Speaker 1: You can attest to that. I know you can. Every
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  Speaker 1: choice that one makes carries consequences, and some have eternal significance.
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  Speaker 1: You know, on my voicemail, it says, life is like
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  Speaker 1: a coin. You can spend it any way you want to,
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  Speaker 1: but you can only spend it once. Spend it wisely.
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  Speaker 1: Got a lot of young people are beginning to realize
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  Speaker 1: that they have no clear directions And you know what's
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  Speaker 1: happening is leaving them anxious about the future. And you've
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  Speaker 1: got to remember now, now is the time to live
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  Speaker 1: faithfully and stand graciously for biblical truth. And under the
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  Speaker 1: guidance of the Holy Spirit of God, continue to share
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  Speaker 1: the gospel. Because God can use you and you and
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  Speaker 1: you to reach a searching soul. But you know, as
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  Speaker 1: we prepare to wrap up, a question's got to be
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  Speaker 1: asked of you. Think about it, young or older or adult,
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  Speaker 1: are you still uncertain? Or are you? Well, ponder this further.
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  Speaker 1: You know, a lot of people in the United States
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  Speaker 1: are nearly evenly divided on whether they are optimistic about
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  Speaker 1: the future. And that's according to a latest unscientific poll
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  Speaker 1: that was done over at the independent reporter, Cheryl Atkinson.
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  Speaker 1: She laid out that 51% say they're not optimistic about
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  Speaker 1: the future, 49% say they are optimistic, with neither side
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  Speaker 1: holding a clear advantage. The poll reflects a deeply divided
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  Speaker 1: view of what the future holds. I don't know about you.
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  Speaker 1: I know about my sojourn and my life. I don't
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  Speaker 1: know what the future holds, but I know, don't guess,
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  Speaker 1: I know who holds it. My future. And the question
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  Speaker 1: you have to ask and answer for your own individual life.
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  Speaker 1: Do you know who holds your future? Well, why not?
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  Speaker 1: You can. You can.