“They’ll never make it in the world”, “they are too soft”, “they don’t need more love they need to be disciplined”, “they don’t know the value of true hard work”, etc.
How often do we hear these kinds of statements in reference to the younger generations of today?
How often do we find ourselves believing these types of ideologies?
I have witnessed firsthand the struggles that these younger people combat as they seek to navigate the educational system and the expectations that society places upon them.
A part of me also recognizes that the issues of today will continue to get worse as many individuals and young people will continue to face issues of poverty, lack of affordable housing, political polarization, family trauma, and higher demands for quality education.
Simply put: the issues of today are not the same as yesterday’s and Satan will inevitably exacerbate these issues to push many individuals into experiencing greater depressions, anxieties, and uncertainties experienced by the majority of the younger generation.
Yet, I am full of hope.
Over the large majority of last year, I have had the unique opportunity to work with children and teenagers struggling with autism, trauma, emotional dysregulation, anxiety, depression, and a whole range of challenges and difficulties.
Many of my clients exhibit complex behaviors and attitudes that warrant the need for professional help and behavioral technicians to teach them the necessary skills needed to overcome contemporary pressures and progress toward ideal outcomes.
I have struggled to know the best way to help these special souls in influencing them for good when they present disruptive behaviors such as spontaneous yelling or blurting out, laying down in the middle of class, disrupting the learning process to ask for snacks, stealing food, making messes, and kicking and screaming to name a few.
Yet, I have been humbled to see the influence of other students upon my clients as they have learned to see past their “weird quirks”. I have seen the younger generation adopt a spirit of inclusion, compassion, understanding, charity, and of love unfeigned.
I have watched students, at the price of their own convenience, comfort, and patience, allow my clients’ opportunities to play in their games, find answers to the riddles they have already solved, and go out of their way to say “hi”.
I have watched them as they have shared their favorite toys, made my clients’ personalized crafts, and act as a friend when a friend was needed.
To each of you, I offer a simple but genuine “thank you”.
Thank you for teaching me what it means to love unconditionally. Thank you for giving the world a symbol of what it means to be inclusive and loving of all individuals.
I offer a word of caution: Satan would have you believe that your potential is limited and that you cannot live up to the expectations placed upon you.
He will do all in his power to stop you or to hinder you in your work and efforts.
He would have you continually doubt who you are and what you are capable of accomplishing.
He will use every tool in his arsenal to stop you in your tracks.
How then do you respond?
In Maurice Harker’s book “Like Dragons Did They Fight” he offers a powerful insight. Satan is “after the Warriors… the ones who are driven to become someone or do important things” (Harker, M., 2017, p.8).
Believe it or not, Satan is facing his greatest threat yet: you. You are one of the noble and great ones reserved for these last days.
If you are struggling to win battles against Satan, recognize it is because of who you are and because he does not want you to reach your potential.
You have the spirit and capacity to bind Satan.
I encourage you to receive the training, tools, and necessary resources needed to help bind Satan and ultimately win the war.
Written by Brandon Nite, MSW graduate, Northwest Nazarene University. You can reach Brandon at bnitetherapy@gmail.com.
