Now More Than Ever: The Importance of Grounding Today’s Children

By Amber Pike

Every generation is distinctly different from the ones before, and Generation Alpha (children born from 2010 through now) follows that same pattern. While the generations may have unique differences, there is one thing all have in common. Every generation and every child needs the saving grace of Jesus, and they need to be grounded in His Word. Every man, woman, and child needs Jesus. However, when you look at Generation Alpha and the challenges they face, you might feel like I do that now, more than ever, we have to reach and ground today’s children.

Having worked with children for almost half of my life, I have made it my job to understand children and how to best reach them for the Kingdom. Having lived in the world of children for so long, I understand that world. At least, I thought I did.

This past year, I took a small group of pre-teens to a weekend event. What I concluded, after reflecting on the trip, floored me. Among these church-attending pre-teens living in the suburbs of the Bible Belt, I discovered that some had experienced being bullied this past year. Most were from a broken home, some with no father figure present. Many of these pre-teens faced extreme anxiety to the degree that it was affecting their quality of life. Others worried if their families would have enough money to buy food or pay rent that month. Some children had eating disorders, low self-worth, and thoughts of suicide. While playing a question-based card game, I asked the group of girls around me if they felt like they were loved unconditionally. Every single girl said no. These were girls I loved on, week after week in church, yet they felt not just unloved but unlovable. 

That’s not even close to the full extent of things these children were facing, nor are issues like these isolated to just my group of preteens. All across the country and the world, our children are dealing with heavy things. The U.S. News reported that earlier this year the suicide rates for thirteen- and fourteen-year-olds have doubled.1 The American Psychological Association found that the number of children struggling and diagnosed with anxiety more than doubled during the pandemic.2 I, as well as others working with children and teens all across America, are seeing these and many other shocking statistics to be true.

This is the world our children are living in—one where the world is constantly telling them that they are not enough. They aren’t smart enough, pretty enough, or worthy enough for love. The world is telling our children that they can’t make it through the tough times and that the only way to escape the pain of adolescence is to give up and end their life. Videos are being created, targeting this young age group, giving them how-to instructions on making the pain go away.

Could you imagine being five years old and feeling that life is too stressful and you are worthless so the only option is to give up? That’s a fairly common feeling for young adolescents today (and that is before their hormones have even kicked in).

Children living in 2024 are struggling. The CDC, in a 2019 report, stated that 10.8% of children aged 5-11 have received treatment for mental health which includes medication and therapy.3 Those statistics are pre-COVID, without taking into account the mental effect COVID had on children. Even without up-to-date statistics, one out of every ten children has received a diagnosis and treatment.

I think you will agree with me that there is a problem. Children are hurting and confused, and unfortunately, they sometimes take these big feelings that they don’t know what to do with and end up hurting themselves. What, then, is the solution? How can we, the church, help these children?

We show them Jesus.

While that might sound like I am stating the obvious, Jesus truly is the obvious (and only) answer. When you dig down and discover the root of the problems, the answer is Jesus.

A child who feels unloved by their friends or family can know that Jesus loves them so much that He died for them.

Society tells children that they need to act a certain way, dress a certain way, and identify a certain way or they will be ostracized and labeled. Jesus tells them that He made them on purpose and for a purpose. He knows the hairs on their head, and He thinks they are amazing.

The stress of life can feel like it is too much, so the world has told children that there is no escape from the pain other than death. Jesus tells them to cast their worries on Him because He cares for them.

The symptoms that Generation Alpha is facing today are identity issues. Humans like to fit in; being the one who is different in a crowd can be hard. Factor in the constant need for digital validation through social media and the overload of information at a child’s fingertips each and every second of the day, as well as a world that shuns anything resembling godliness, and you have the world our children are living in. They are trying to be who the world says they are because they don’t know who God says they are.

I am not saying that children dealing with these issues should just be handed a Bible and sent on their way, nor am I discounting the need for medical professionals to help a child. By all means, if a child in your life is thinking about harming themselves in any way, please get them the help they need. But they also need Jesus.

Now more than ever, our children need to know who they are in Christ. They need to know that they are fearfully and wonderfully made. They are known by the Father and loved by Him with a radical love. They are not mistakes. They are not a waste of space. They were created on purpose and for a purpose. When they look into the mirror, they need to know what God sees, a masterpiece.

The fight for the hearts and souls of boys and girls continues to rage on. Satan is fighting overtime for this generation, prowling like a lion to devour. How do we fight back? On our knees. Pray for this generation, that they know the Father’s love. Then go out into the world and show that love. Be the light to a hurting generation.

ENDNOTES

1. Amy Norton, “Suicide Rates Among U.S. Adolescents Doubled in 10 Years,” U.S. News, May 1, 2023, usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2023-05-01/suicide-rates-among-u-s-adolescents-doubled-in-10-years.

2. Tori DeAngelis, “Anxiety Among Kids is on the Rise,” American Psychological Association, October 1, 2002, apa.org/monitor/2022/10/child-anxiety-treatment.

3. Benjamin Zablotsky, Ph.D., and Emily P. Terlizzi, M.P.H., “Mental Health Treatment Among Children Aged 5-17 Years: United States, 2019,” Center for Disease Control, September 2020, cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db381.htm.