Gen Y asks Y
24th November 2009 by Angela Cairns
Why do people think Edward is hotter than Jacob?
Why do we have to keep doing maths after we've learnt the basics?
Why is my mum such a nag? Why do I have to look after my little brother this afternoon? Why do I have to clean my room?
Why doesn't the sun fall out of the sky? Why does my teacher wear that ugly shirt? Why does our youth pastor do such idiotic things? Why is church so boring?
Why does a tsunami hit Samoa and kill innocent people? Why should I listen to you talk about God?
Why? Why? Why?
Some people say ‘Curiosity killed the cat!'
Why do we ask why about so many small things, but not stop to ask ourselves why before we make big, life-changing decisions?
You're at a party, your mate says they have an "E" and you can have it, free. Do you ask yourself "why you would want to have an E"? Or, do you just think "sure, whatever, it's free why not"?
You're at a mate's house, they don't have a block on their net. He starts to google a great porno website he's discovered. Do you stop and ask yourself why you need to look, or do you just go with it ...?
You're with your boyfriend ... alone ... and things are getting heavy. Kissing has turned to touching and ... it's looking like you're going to go further. Do you mentally stop and ask yourself why? Or do you just go with the flow?
You're on the net and someone starts to write a blog on someone and what a drop kick they are and how they are such a "____". You decide to write back (publicly) and add to the blog ... Do you stop and ask yourself "why do I want to bring someone down, and have their spirit crushed, ruin their day and damage their reputation?"
You're on Facebook/MySpace. Your mum asks "how was your day?" She tries to talk to you, and meanwhile, your best friend is online and you're having a great conversation ... Do you ask yourself "Why is it more important for me to talk to my friend?" Do you stop and think that maybe it's important to talk to your Mum now?
You just found out you're pregnant. Someone suggests you have an abortion. They say it will be easier and is "better for the kid" because there's no dad and no money. They'll even lend you the money to abort. Do you ask yourself "why"? "Why will it be better for the baby to be brutally killed than to live without a dad?" "Why (how) will it be better for the child?" Or do you just listen to what you're being told?
Why ask why?
Asking yourself "why?" is a way of understanding things. It's a way of weighing up consequences and making better decisions.
I want to challenge you, regardless of your background, whether you believe in God, or whether you've already made some bad mistakes - to ask yourself WHY from now on. Stop and think ... "WHY do I want to do that? Do I really want to do that? What will happen tomorrow? What will be the result of my actions?"
Consequences of not asking
I have some friends with serious emotional scars. Perhaps if they had stopped and asked themselves why, their scars would be less and their consequences would have been less severe. Maybe if we all asked ourselves why more often, we would make less mistakes. Asking why is simply a way of taking control of your own situation, your own life and preventing some pretty serious consequences.
I'd like to suggest that curiosity doesn't always kill the cat.
What God says
Proverbs 3:13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding.
Proverbs 10:13 Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but a rod is for the back of him who lacks judgement
Matthew 7:12 Treat others as you want them to treat you.
Angela Cairns is Youth Pastor at Tweed Heads Salvation Army on the north coast of New South Wales. She's passionate about reaching out to young people across her city.
Angela loves music and is a talented singer and musician, as well as an avid songwriter. She is married to Lucas and they have three children.
save. grow. serve.
save - noah rzeminski
Noah Rzeminski from Wollongong tells how his father was not happy with his decision to b... Read more
serve - nadine sorensen
Nadine Sorensen shares how God altered her persepctive while on mission in Kenya... Read more
Got your own story to share? Write to us today!
Comments
If I Were On Facebook..I'd Click The 'Like' Button ( :
Great Message.
These small things born out of a deep understanding really helps all.Cause its really true.. We always ask why? Yeah.. we need to put why in the right way perhaps, to learn the right thing.