CHICAGO (Reuters) – More than one in 10 U.S. children live with an alcoholic parent and are at increased risk of developing a host of health problems of their own, according to a new government study released on Thursday.

Researchers at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) analyzed national survey data from 2005 through 2010 and found that, on average, 7.5 million children — about 10.5 percent of the country’s under-18 population — lived with a parent abusing alcohol during any given year.

Most of those kids — an average of 6.1 million each year — lived in two-parent households where one or both of the adults had a drinking disorder, the researchers found.

Of the 1.4 million children who lived in a single-parent home where the adult had a drinking issue, the overwhelming majority — 1.1 million — were in female-headed households, SAMHSA said.

The researchers said children living with alcoholics were at greater risk of suffering from a number of mental health problems, including depression and anxiety.

The children were also more likely to be abused or neglected by their parents, more likely to have cognitive or language deficiencies, and four times more likely to develop alcohol problems of their own, the researchers said.

(Reporting by James B. Kelleher; Editing by Daniel Trotta)

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Most of us have never heard of Dorothy Anderson Tormoehlen. She was hardly known outside her small, Indiana community. Yet, at one time her image was one of the most familiar in the United States. She was the Morton Salt girl.

There were actually several Morton Salt girls over the years, but Dorothy was the one with the pretty yellow dress and the ribbon in her hair found on containers in the 1920s and 1930s. As a niece of professional artist Mary Anderson, Dorothy was used regularly as a model for various renderings of children.

The Morton Salt Company began using a girl with an umbrella on their round, blue salt containers in 1914. Today, 88 years later, the phrase “when it rains, it pours” continues to remind us of the philosophy of a generation that felt if you got one problem, you were going to get even more.

Three Groups

The Builder Generation is made up of people who were born prior to 1946 and includes some 59 million people or 21 percent of the U.S. population. Various names have been coined to describe the Builders. Some describe them today: Suppies (senior, urban professionals), Opals (older people with active lifestyles), Rappies (retired, affluent professionals), Whoopies (well-heeled older people), and Grumpies (grown-up mature people).

Perhaps the most characteristic names are Strivers, Survivors and Builders. Whether as adults or children, Builders strived through World War I and World War II. They survived Black Tuesday, the Great Depression and Pearl Harbor. Through tough times and with hard work they built families, traditions, values, homes, friendships, communities, churches, and the greatest nation in the world.

We can divide the Builders into three smaller groups: the G.I. Generation, the Silent Generation and the War Babies.

The G.I. Generation

The oldest Builders can be called the G.I. Generation because they came of age and fought during World War I and World War II. Born prior to 1925, they are today more than 77 years old. There are approximately 16 million people in the G.I. Generation representing 6 percent of the population. Seven presidents came from this G.I. Generation. President George Bush was the last.

The Silent Generation

The Silent Generation is comprised of people born between 1926 and 1939 who are between 63 and 76 years old. There are currently around 25 million people in the United States in this age group, or 9 percent of the population. They are called the Silent Generation because when they were in their prime, in the 1950s, they were fairly content and silent, especially when compared to the G.I. Generation. As a generation, they reached young adulthood during our country’s years of prosperity in the 1950s. There was no need to be outspoken.

The War Babies

People born between 1940 and 1945 were called War Babies. They represent about 6 percent of our total population for 16 million people. Today they are between the ages of 57 and 62 years old.

Characteristics

Win Arn, writing about this generation in Live Long and Love It says, “We were here before pantyhose, drip-dry clothes, icemakers, dishwashers, clothes dryers, freezers and electric blankets.” Builders were also born before the birth control pill, television, penicillin, polio shots, Frisbees, hula hoops, frozen foods, Dacron, Xerox, the Kinsey Report, radar, credit cards, ballpoint pens, tape decks, CDs, electric typewriters and computers.
There is a danger in characterizing an entire generation with the broad brush strokes that follow. Of course, many people in a generation will not fit into such a description, but when the generation is taken as a whole it seems to exhibit these characteristics.

Hard Workers

As a group, Builders are hard workers. A rural lifestyle made this a necessity. Even with the emergence of the industrial age and the growth of factories and industry, hard work was required to survive in poor economic times. Labor laws were not strictly enforced, unions were just beginning to gain power, and working hard was the best way to keep your job and feed your family. Builders moved ahead due to diligence and perseverance. Builders who have retired often continue to work hard. Common statements from Builders are, “I’ve got too many things to do” or “I’m busier in retirement than I was while working.”

Savers

Sixty-one years ago, Americans were learning to live with rationing and shortages in an effort to support the needs of World War II. It was a time of unity as everyone pitched in to support the Allied war effort. People got along. They adapted and learned to make something out of nothing. They found a way.

The Great Depression and the rationing of World War II taught Builders to save anything that might have value. You never knew when you might need that piece of string, used bar of soap, or piece of metal. The loss of money in the stock market crash and the bank closures created a desire to save money rather than spend it. Parents tried to save money in order to leave an estate to their children. A top priority was the future welfare of children.

Frugal

Luxuries were not available to most Builders until after the children left home, if then. During the lean years of the Depression, adults and children learned frugality. Christmas mornings found stockings filled with nuts, apples or oranges. Things were mended and repaired rather than thrown away – cardboard often stretched the life of shoes. Lights were turned out, heat was turned down, and energy-burning items were turned off to save money. In those days, Builders used public transportation or walked to nearby stores. They planted gardens and canned food. Charging purchases on credit was not widely practiced. “Use it up; thin it out; make it last; do without” and “make do or do without” were common sayings. Today, Builders still tend to be frugal.

Patriotic

Many Builders fought in at least one war and are very patriotic. During the world wars, the personal sacrifice required by all those who remained at home also created strong patriotic feelings. Holidays are important, particularly those having to do with patriotic themes such as Veterans Day, Independence Day and Memorial Day. Builders love and zealously support their country, its leaders and its ideals. This meant that Builders in general found it difficult to be sympathetic with Baby Boomers who fled the country to avoid the draft during the Vietnam War or burned draft cards and flags in the street.

Loyal

Commitment is highly valued by Builders. They united together to win the greatest wars ever experienced. They worked together as families to make it through the Great Depression. They still debate theological issues and defend their religion. They “buy American.” Builders often worked for only one company for a lifetime, often on the same job. They trust the company, union or government to take care of them for a lifetime. Builders often see things as black and white rather than in grays. They do things because they believe it is right to do them.

Private

“We don’t air our dirty laundry in public” was a regular admonishment from Builder parents to their Boomer children. “Good company, good food, good night!” was another saying that stressed the need for privacy.

Builders like the idea of knowing about people but resist sharing deep concerns that would allow them to really know each other. Small groups for Bible study are fine but not for personal sharing of deep hurts or needs. Such sharing is only acceptable within the family.
Topics of a personal or intimate nature are taboo. Personal expressions of a sexual nature even between husbands and wives are not for public display. As they grew up, many Builders never received a hug or experienced closeness with their fathers.

Cautious

The times of simply surviving taught older Builders to settle for modest goals, hold on to savings, and be thankful for simply having a job. Few people were protected by life insurance, and the Depression stopped many from saving for retirement. Their lives were lived at the mercy of an unplanned economy and limited occupational opportunities. Luxuries had to wait until after the children left home, and even then, many Builders were too cautious to indulge.

Respectful

During their formative years most Builders were taught to have respect for people. Children were taught to respect their parents and elders. Workers respected their bosses. Privates in the military respected their officers. The position was respected even if the individual in the position was not.

As a result, Builders tend to be more thoughtful, considerate, and kind to others than the succeeding generations. Theirs was not a “me” generation as much as a “we” generation. They go out of their way to help neighbors and support each other in times of need.

Dependable

Builders see value in self-discipline, sticking together, and staying with the task in the face of any adversity. “If the job is worth doing, it’s worth doing well,” is their motto. Builders have continued to work hard even as the times have become more affluent.

Stable

For Builders who grew up in a rural lifestyle, life was fairly predictable. You rose early to do the chores. You cultivated, planted, watered, cultivated some more, and waited for the harvest, which eventually came. You planted and harvested at about the same times every year.

Certainly life was unpredictable in terms of the Depression and war, but in the things closer to home, such as family, work and church, things were the same. As the times have changed and life has become more unpredictable, Builders try to remain stable, holding to the same goals and ideals their generation has valued for years.

Intolerant

As a group, Builders tend to be less tolerant than the Boomers, Busters or Bridgers of people who are different from them. This is partly due to the fact that most Builders have spent most of their lives in fairly homogeneous communities. They have resisted change, believing the way they and their parents have done things is the best way.
“When it rains, it pours” became a watchword for the Builder Generation. The Morton Salt girl’s prophecy was fulfilled in several dramatic ways that continue to fashion the members of this generation.

While generational change is taking place, wise church leaders will continue to provide effective ministry to this powerful generation.

Dr. Gary L. McIntosh is professor of Christian Ministry & Leadership at Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, Calif.

1. Home milk delivery in glass bottles, with cardboard stoppers
2. 45 RPM Records
3. Hi-Fi’s
4. Candy cigarettes
5. Soda pop machines that dispensed glass bottles
6. Metal ice cube trays with levers
7. Reel-to-reel tape recorders
8. Tinkertoys
9. When the first man walked on the moon
10. When The Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan show
11. Hoola hoop contests
12. Blackjack, Clove and Teaberry chewing gum
13. Telephone numbers with a word prefix….(Victor 2-1701)
14. Green Stamps
15. Mimeograph paper
16. Blue flash bulbs
17. Cork pop guns
18. Drive ins
19. Wash Tub wringers
20. The “twist”, “mashed potatoes”, and “funky-chicken”
21. Erector Sets
22. penny candy
23. When the Beatles arrived
24. Coffee shops with tableside juke boxes
25. Party lines
26. Newsreels before the movie
27. Peashooters
28. Roller skate keys
29. The Fuller Brush man
30. Phonographs
31. The Fort Apache Playset
32. Lincoln Logs
33. 15 cent McDonald hamburgers & 10 cent fries
34. # 5 cent packs of baseball cards; with that slab of pink bubblegum
35. When the Barbie doll hit the scene
36. Wax coke-shaped bottles with colored sugar water inside
37. PF Flyers
38. Butch wax
39. Howdy Doody
40. Studebakers
41. 35 cent-a-gallon gasoline
42. Beanie and Cecil
43. Buying milk from a vending machine for a quarter, with your penny change taped to the side

When I opened up Yahoo this morning to get the morning news I noticed in “Trending Now” (the top internet searches) were Jeremy Lin and Kylie Bisuti. A month ago, it was Tim Tebow.  Why does this matter?

They are emerging adults (ages 18-29);

They are very public figures (Lin is an NBA player with the NY Knicks; Bisuti is a professional model; Tebow is an NFL player with the Denver Broncos);

They have already accomplished enough in their chosen field of expertise to be recognized in a popular fashion

They are H1:8 people!

Jeremy Lin is a Bay Area born, Palo Alto raised, Chinese-American professional basketball player. (Have I also mentioned he is also Harvard educated?) He has taken New York by a storm having scored 23, 28 and 25 points in the past 3 games. Jeremy is the NBA’s first American-born player of Chinese descent. He loves our Savior and hopes one day to be a pastor. In spite of all of his newly found popularity, Jeremy is unashamedly vocal about his faith. Lin, who grew up in church, revealed in a 2010 interview that he “really” became a Christian while a freshman in high school, and views his athleticism as a way of bringing glory to God.

Kylie Bisuti is a Simi Valley, California product who was best known for winning the 2009 Victoria Secret model. Today in an interview with George Stephanopoulos she is walking away from the glammer and the instant money (many models make up to $5000 an hour) because of a conflict with her chosen career and her faith. She feels her body belongs to her husband and will pursue more wholesome venues for modeling.

Tim Tebow…enough said!

Faith the kind which pleases God because it is active and courageous is alive and active amongst a new generation of believers.

One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
(Psalm 145:4 ESV)

Here’s to Us Baby Boomers Everywhere!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can and didn’t get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered
with bright colored lead-base paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had baseball caps not helmets on our heads..

As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, no booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes.

Riding in the back of a pick- up truck on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon. We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar. And, we weren’t overweight.. WHY?

Because we were always outside playing…that’s why!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on..

No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were OKAY.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride them down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem

We did not have Play stations, Nintendo’s and X-boxes. There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD’s, no surround-sound or CD’s, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet and no chat rooms.

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We would get spankings with wooden spoons, switches, ping pong paddles, or just a bare hand and no one would call child services to report abuse.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not poke out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.

If YOU are one of them, CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good.

Millennials: Confident. Connected. Open to Change

Generations, like people, have personalities, and Millennials — the American teens and twenty-somethings who are making the passage into adulthood at the start of a new millennium — have begun to forge theirs: confident, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat and open to change. They are more ethnically and racially diverse than older adults. They’re less religious, less likely to have served in the military, and are on track to become the most educated generation in American history…Read more

John Stott, I Believe in Preaching, page 69

MERGING ADULTS VIEW CHRISTIANITY

24 million (or 40%) are outside the Faith

Only 1/3 believe that Christians genuinely care about them

Only 1/4 firmly perceive that Christianity offers them “hope for the future”

Only 15% strongly believe Christianity is “genuine and real”

81% say that the Christian faith teaches pretty much the same basic ideas as other religions

EMERGING ADULTS (16-29) VIEW CHRISTIANS

Christians are…

…Anti-homosexual  91%

…Judgmental 87%

…Hypocritical 85%

…Old Fashioned 78%

…Too involved in politics 75%

…Out of touch with reality 72%

…insensitive to others 70%

…boring  68%

…not accepting of other faiths  64%

…confusing 61%

UnChristian, pg 34

Here we have a third old wives tale and this one pertains specifically to a curse. The Old Testament had more than a few notable curses. For instance, after the Fall the immediate consequence was a cursing upon man’s efforts to make a productive livelihood (see Genesis 3:17). Another cursing falls upon those who fail to bless Abraham (see Genesis 12:3). Consequently, the people thought that once cursed, always cursed.

In Haggai 2:20-23 another curse looms large. However, in order to understand this you need to understand some Old Testament history.

Wives’ Tale #3 – Once Cursed, Always Cursed (vv 20-23)

Hopefully you will remember that there was period of time called the United or Single Monarchy when all of the Jews were under the single rule of a Monarch. Saul was the first king who ruled for 40 years, followed by David who ruled for 40 and followed by Solomon who ruled for 40. Because Solomon was a divided man in heart and affection – You can say rather Solomon being an H1:8 kind of person he was more like a H.9 kind of person! As a result, God split his kingdom into two kingdoms. I like to say at this point there were 2 sonic booms. There was Jeraboom and Rehaboom! Jeraboom heads up the Northern Kingdom and Rehaboom the Southern Kingdom. There were 19 kings in the Northern Kingdom and all were evil. They were usurpers to the throne. There were 20 kings in the South. Even though many were evil they were still the legitimate heirs to the throne. Each had what was called “prophetic unction”, a prophet testified to their legitimacy. About 550 years after Haggai wrote, a prophet named John the Baptist will give prophetic unction to Jesus Christ and, thereby, attest to the legitimacy of Jesus’ kingship and Jesus’ absolute right to occupy the throne of David.

Now here is how this works. Zerubbabel had a grandfather named Jeconiah who many years earlier had been one of the last kings of Judah before the exile. He was a wicked king who did not serve the Lord. In Jeremiah 22:28-30 God pronounced a curse upon Jeconiah.

[28] Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot,

a vessel no one cares for?

Why are he and his children hurled and cast

into a land that they do not know?

[29] O land, land, land,

hear the word of the LORD!

[30] Thus says the LORD:

“Write this man down as childless,

a man who shall not succeed in his days,

for none of his offspring shall succeed

in sitting on the throne of David

and ruling again in Judah.”

(Jeremiah 22:28-30 ESV)

Jeconiah is being told that not only will he be punished, but all his descendants will be cursed as well and none of them will ever sit on the throne of David.

But now God thru Haggai says to his grandson Zerubbabel, “I will make you like a signet ring” (v 23). When an ancient king wanted to affix his seal to a document, he would take his signet ring, impress it into soft wax, which would then harden into an unbreakable seal. Thus a signet ring was much more than a decorative ring. It signified honor, authority, ownership, preservation and a personal guarantee of safety.

Here we see the grace of God at work. Because of Zerubbabels’ faithfulness to God, the curse on his family has been lifted. The signet ring is back on his finger. And even though he never became a king and sat on the throne of David, it is through his line that Jesus will eventually come to claim His rightful heir as the King of Judah and sit upon His throne as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Furthermore it is by grace alone through faith alone in and because of Christ alone we too bear the royal seal as the Holy Spirit seals us until we reach our perfect state. Until then we are under His ownership, honored, preserved and given a personal guarantee of safety by God.

A. God is a curse shattering God

And so here is the timely principle: Like in the case of Zerubbabel God can lift any and all curses that hang over you. Whether they are real or they are just perceived God is a curse shattering God and when God shatters a curse there is no need to live like you are still under it.

My son came over yesterday to watch the 49er football game. And after the Saints scored that touchdown with just under a minute of time left, he said to me, “Dad, please come over here and turn off the TV!”

I said “Why turn it off now when you have watched the entire game up to this point?”

He said “Because the 49ers always lose these kind of games. It is their fate to snatch defeat from the hands of victory.”

That is living under a curse! You think and you act defeated when you are under a curse. There is no real  hope but only a deepening sense of failure and doom.

I think it is very important even though it isn’t Mother’s Day or Father’s Day to talk about family curses. If you were so blessed to be brought up in a family that functioned by biblical, God fearing principles then you are blessed. That’s one of God’s greatest secrets about happiness. Many did not have that blessing.  Instead they were raised by distant or absentee parents especially father’s who never connected emotionally with their children and cared only about providing and little about nurturing. In some cases it was actually worse. You were abandoned completely by your dad or your mom or both. In many cases it is because those parents have put their own interests ahead of their children’s interests the result has been that the children suffer at the hands of those who should be their protectors. Children often become parents to their parents, growing up long before their time. But the real tragedy in it all is that a constant message of rejection is sent their way.

For some of you your parents tried to compensate for their absenteeism by wining your love indulging you at times with money and things. That’s even worse because that’s false love.

The cumulative effect is like a curse which runs through generation and generation of families.  I have some statistics that if time would permit would pretty much seal the deal.  These were statistics compiled from parentless homes especially fatherless home environments.

70% of all delinquents in state reform institutions come from absentee dads;

70% more likely to be expelled from school;

You don’t have to live under that curse. You can come out from under that curse.  We believe that God can and does lift that curse and all curses because He is a curse shattering God. That is what we learn from Zerubbabel.

Of course, all curses are broken because of Jesus Christ. Our greatest is that we are under the God’s righteous law and unless you are perfect you are a law-breaker and law-breakers are deserving of a penalty. That is a curse we all labor under.

B. Jesus Christ will be the ultimate curse (Galatians 3:13-14)

[13] Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”—[14] so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

(Galatians 3:13-14 ESV)