THE LAST RIVER MILE

The children are watching this current national dumpster fire. We might like to delude ourselves into believing they are just going about the business of being children, glued to their screens, and oblivious to everything going on. That is purely a delusion. They are watching, they are taking notes, and they are learning. And what we’re teaching them by word and action is…well, …

Let’s just look at what they are learning from so much of leadership in the spotlight in these days. They are learning that force is the answer to everything. Whoever can muster the most muscle or firepower is “right” by default. Name-calling and demeaning are totally acceptable if they serve your viewpoint. Flip off opponents if they challenge you in public. Any lie is perfectly fine if it feed the preferred political agenda. If you want it, just claim it – it doesn’t matter what someone else may need. Punishing those who disagree with you is more important than the overall good of all people.

And, for good measure, slap a thin coat of “Christian” rhetoric over it all to make it all okay.

Who is teaching the children that compassion and respect are values worth pursing, even and especially in leadership? Who is teaching them that courage is found in standing for what is right, and doing so in a way that honors the innate worth of all human beings? Who is teaching them that statesmanship actually is a skill and an artform worth learning and cultivating?

In the Jesus-following worldview we know that Christianity is more caught than taught. How we live and what we model teach more than what we speak, write, or post. To promote one set of values while demonstrating a whole different set is not just neutral; it is counterproductive.

The children are watching. Would that we were putting as much effort into what they see as we are into “winning” whatever battle we think is worth compromising the values we really ought to be modeling.

I’ll see you around the next bend in the river.