What Do You Value?

About a month ago, Mission Australia came out with results from a survey they did of 46,000 young people (that is, anyone between 11-24yrs), asking them a range of questions regarding their values and concerns. They've been doing it for a few years now, which helps show the common values young people have at their age and in this culture. I'll only point out a few interesting tidbits from the report, but as you look at these, have a think about what it is that you value (or used to value, if you're no longer considered young like me!).

Values
We start with the warm and fuzzies. The things that young people value the most? 'Family Relationships' and 'Friends' i.e. Other people. This is the way God has made this world and society, "...in humility count others more significant than yourselves" (Phil 2:3b), which is done by the command, "Love your neighbour as yourself" (Lev 19:18).

Furthermore, 'Feeling needed and valued' has fallen by nearly half from 26% to 14%, which is a great sign indicating that young people these days are feeling valued, and ultimately receiving love from those around them and therefore not needing to highlight this as an issue. Seeing young people value others beyond themselves is a great thing and is pleasing to God, particularly since almost everything else in this list is pretty well self-centred...

...but there is one important thing on this list which isn't self-centred, and is low on the value list, and that's 'Spirituality/faith' i.e. God. In fact, if you look at it, young people valuing God and valuing dedication to God's ways is deteriorating rapidly, dropping from 14% to less than 10% in the last 4 years. That's 1 in 10 young people in Australia value God, the one who made them and gives them all good things! This also suggests that its only a matter of years before Christianity is but a remnant in this society.

If anything, the rapid rise in focus on 'School or study satisfaction' from 21% to 37% is indicative of a culture focused on worldly things as for a young person, the school and study is their world. For a worker, it would be the equivalent of placing your workplace and work satisfaction as #3 on the list, after family and friendships, but much above God. In 1 John it says,

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world--the desires of the flesh and pride in possessions--is not from the Father but is from the world."(1 John 2:15-16)

So what do you value? If you're a parent, what values are you seeing in your children as you raise them? Whether it's you or the people you influence, here's an encouragement for you to value the will of God, for "the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:17)