Let 'Em Fight

I can’t tell you how many times that I hear parents complain about how materialistic their children are. I will admit that it does seem that way sometimes. According to a study described in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, the generation of young Americans born after 1982, shows an increasing trend of valuing money, image, and fame more than inherent principles like self-acceptance, affiliation, and community. It calls the generation, “Generation Me”.  

He is my question…Why? Why do we see young people as selfish? Are we to blame?

I often hear parents say that they want their children to have things better than what they had growing up. Does that mean that they should give them everything? Do they think their children are going to be better off because they get everything their hearts desire?  Or, are we creating our own problem?

Wait a minute; I thought we were talking about fighting! We are. Here is the deal. We want well rounded young people who care about their community and grow up to make the world a better place. Why would they fight to make the world a better place when their world is the best place? They won’t!

When young people are so into material things, they begin to identify themselves by what they have. When you spend all of your time identifying with what you have and what others have, there is no time left to think about what others lack.

In order for our young people to fight for something, we can't give them everything. Let ‘Em Fight!

Jody McPhearson

Impacting Communities, Encouraging Leaders, Inspiring Hope

http://theredefinedproject.org/speakers/jody_mcphearson.php