Children as Elders
By: Susan Deborah Schiller
Many people feel sorry for me when they hear of the great trials I've endured, but I only feel blessed. Blessed are those who mourn, blessed are those who are persecuted… says Jesus, in Matthew 5. Our trials are turned to gold – and I feel very rich, especially when the prayer leader said to Danielle, "You are a warrior princess."
Children are meant to be today's elders, in the Kingdom of God, as well as tomorrow's leaders. But not the breed of children we are typically seeing in today's schools, neighborhoods and homes. What is really happening?
Socrates nailed it, back in the 4th century:
The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.
Our narcissistic society has bred a selfish and spoiled generation who have forgotten the ancient ways of respect, honor, and self-discipline.
Will it be church, government policies, social programs, or school that changes the current narcissistic trend? No! Not, in a world where love is waning lukewarm and headed to cold, hard, and dead. Only love overcomes all evil.
I believe it's the ordinary, loving people who will rise up in childlike faith and boldness, for that is the key to entering the Kingdom of Heaven.
We each take turns being saints and villains in our life stories. It's not the perfect people who will change the world.
My granddaughter, at age 5, had such a vision, which I published in "No Fear: Live the 13th". An excerpt:
My granddaughter came to me and said, "Gramma, lay down. I want to sing a song to you." Giving me a pillow and covering me with a blanket, she began to sing:
"I wake up in the morning,
I see the trees and sky.
I go outside.
I see the birds and the butterflies,
I say a little prayer for someone.
Then I do something for someone.
Our brains are for thinking about God.
Then we say a little prayer for someone.
We do something for someone."
Danielle explained to me, "Gramma, you don't hear God with your ears. You listen with your heart. And then you sing what you hear in your heart."
… Okay, now imagine a whole neighborhood doing the same… a whole city…
We don't have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in the process of change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world. ~ Howard Zinn
This morning, I meditate on this picture once again. For me, pictures are like prayers, worth more than a thousand words. And I pray, "Let the change begin in me and in my own house."
Narcissist love and pathological abuse are rampant in our world, especially inside our churches. The best cure is moving in the opposite direction, and that is EXPOSING the evil and PROTECTING the victims!
Creative imagination is what children employ every day when they are allowed to play, to make up stories, and to use their talents and explore their gifts. It's for the next generation that I keep writing, and continue sharing my story… because it's how we tell our stories that creates our world.
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With all my love,
Sue
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
To learn more about the Sundance, sweat lodges, and the ceremonies we participated in this past weekend: https://youtu.be/EK4fCv5ekzI
Sue,
Your post was so interesting! I loved the part about how your granddaughter sang to you. I also loved the prayers in pictures. It's a little bit strange that you wrote about a catalyst for good with your Mr.Goofy, et al, piece. Just this morning, I read that people are "streaming to the Middle East for lack of a catalyist to follow," so they just want change. Period. Because people are disappointed and trying not to feel like failuures. I like your perspective and kind of catalyist much better than people being drawn to ISIS only for a chance at change.
Thanks,
Amy
Change for the sake of change, having no foundation – you’re right, Amy – it’s very scary. We all need something bigger than to belong to – our people. I see bullies in school using this very need to control their peers, not much different than what adults do. It’s really time for change – a real change.
Thanks for sharing!
I am a teacher and I so see this in children today. The level of disrespect is unbelievable.
It seems to be nationwide, isn’t it, Melissa… I am concerned what this level of disrespect will look like when these children have children of their own!