Not For Sale

On March 16th, I received an email with the following Subject Line: “Dan, quick question”.

The email was sent to me from Nathan Willis, a name that was close enough to a few other individuals that I know, so I opened it.

The opening of the email read as follows…

“Hi Dan,

I hope you are doing well! Are you considering selling Youth For Christ USA Inc. in the coming months or years?”

Nathan went on to explain that he has facilitated the sale of organizations that has resulted in over “$500 million in our clients’ pockets.”

At first, I smirked at the outrageous question, and of course, the presumption that some how I would have a voice in a decision like this. And then, the humorous onramp created a sobering journey. On so many levels, our young people are for sale.

Sophisticated technology, and opportunistic capitalism have kicked open the door to a generation of young people who are a gateway to bloated bottom lines, and political dogma at the expense of personal identity and dignity.

A generation is for sale, and many of us didn’t realize it until the transaction was complete. Indeed, shrewd businesses have monetized the unthinkable. A click can become cash. And that cash becomes the fuel for more invasive assaults.

Pervasive and pointed. And in so many ways… private.

A generation is for sale, and there was never even a sign in the front yard.

That’s why I kept Nathan’s email. It’s an invitation to categorically declare that this next generation is not for sale. None of them. Not the high achiever, or the overlooked. Not the high school football star, or the juvenile offender. Not college students, or electricians.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that this generation of young people is a masterpiece… and yes, they have been bought with a price. At unimaginable cost. That means that they are officially off the market, now and forever. That they are more than the sum total of their ability to influence, or post, or like, or stream. They are image bearers, not users. They are designed with dignity, not objects to be disbursed. They are of eternal value, and not merely pawns on a global chessboard.

Researchers call them, Generation Z. God calls them His.

Corporations target them. God rescues them.

Political causes leverage them. God embraces them.

They are not for sale. Not for $500 million dollars. Not for any price.

They have a promised land to occupy. A purpose to live into. A Kingdom to advance.

No, Nathan. Youth For Christ is not for sale.