{"id":304766,"date":"2017-11-16T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-11-16T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work\/"},"modified":"2017-11-16T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2017-11-16T17:00:00","slug":"the-vital-role-of-challenging-work","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work\/","title":{"rendered":"The Vital Role of Challenging Work"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Senator Ben Sasse\u00a0explores the vital role that challenging work plays in the formation of healthy adults.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/web.familylifetoday.com\/fl2017-11-16.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:24:55","filesize":"22.81M","filesize_raw":"23918313","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2822,2821],"tags":[6356,6355],"podcast_series":[8248],"cwp_profile":[9472],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-304766","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-growing-in-your-faith","category-reaching-out","tag-adulthood","tag-museum-of-the-bible","podcast_series-introducing-the-museum-of-the-bible","cwp_profile-ben-sasse","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/304766\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/304766\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Gg92DngrXe\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work\/\">The Vital Role of Challenging Work<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-vital-role-of-challenging-work\/embed\/#?secret=Gg92DngrXe\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;The Vital Role of Challenging Work&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"Gg92DngrXe\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Senator Ben Sasse\u00a0explores the vital role that challenging work plays in the formation of healthy adults.","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2017-11-16.pdf","transcript_content":"<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Are your children maturing each year as they grow up? Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse says a lot of kids aren\u2019t growing up, and it\u2019s a problem. Here he is talking about it with CNN.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Adolescence is a gift. The idea that you have a kind of greenhouse stage\u2014as you transition from the dependency of early childhood to the independence of adulthood \/ that greenhouse transition phase of adolescence, where, just because you hit puberty \/ just because you become biologically an adult\u2014we don\u2019t, now, think you have to be emotionally, morally, financially, school-leaving \/ household-construction wise\u2014you don\u2019t have to be fully independent just because you\u2019re 13 or 14. That\u2019s a gift!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tPerpetual adolescence is a danger. We should be able to distinguish between ten-, and fifteen-, and twenty-, and twenty-five-year-olds; and it\u2019s increasingly difficult to do that. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>1:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s a very new thing\u2014a bunch of causes. One is\u2014we live at the richest time in the richest nation in all of human history, and so our kids have largely been insulated from necessity.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>This is a special edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Thursday, November 16<sup>th<\/sup>. Our host is the President of FamilyLife<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. We\u2019re live today at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, which is about to open. Our guest is Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse. We\u2019re going to talk about helping your kids become adults. Stay with us.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>2:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd welcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Thanks for joining us, again, today, live at the Museum of the Bible, which is opening this weekend. This is going to be exciting for folks who are in the DC area \/ folks who are traveling here. If you\u2019re making plans to be in our nation\u2019s capital, you need to include a day to go through the Museum of the Bible. This is pretty spectacular.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Come early. The lines are going to form, I promise you; because this is no downstream museum. We were told that one of the leaders of the Louvre came here, went through it, and said, \u201cThis is the finest, most up-to-date, relevant museum in the world.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Yes; wonderful.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>They typically know a little bit about what they\u2019re talking about over there in France.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>We have a guest joining us today\u2014a special guest, here, in Washington, DC. Do you want to introduce the gym rat?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>I\u2019d love to do that. [Laughter] Ben Sasse joins us\u2014Senator Ben Sasse joins us on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Excuse me, Senator.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>I prefer gym rat.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>3:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Who is it that calls you the gym rat pretty regularly?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>The President and I wrestle on a bunch of different issues. He has taken to calling me the gym rat, and I embrace it. I\u2019m the son of a football and wrestling coach in Nebraska. Gym rat is high praise.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>So you were right in there in the gym, smelling the sweat, and the dirty jerseys, and all that. You\u2019re used to it. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>I\u2019ve been in there this morning; yes, sir. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Well, Senator Sasse is married to Melissa; they have three children. He is a fifth-generation Nebraskan and has written a book called <em>The Vanishing American Adult: Our Coming-of-Age Crisis and How to Rebuild a Culture of Self-Reliance<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou\u2019re really talking about some of the observations you\u2019ve made, not only as a dad, but also, professionally, when you were a president of a college. There was a Christmas tree being decorated one time that gave you an insight into this next generation. I just want\u2014before you tell the story, I want to set it up with this\u2014I\u2019ve told this story a couple of times recently, but this is\u2014you\u2019re talking about something that\u2019s on my heart as well.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>4:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI was sitting on a plane next to a Chick-Fil-A<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> operator, and he was one who had been the boss of five of our six kids. We had our kids work for Chick-Fil-A, because they\u2019re off on Sundays\u2014we like that. They taught them the work ethic \/ they taught them to understand the customer. I asked my friend\u2014I said, \u201cLooking back to our kids and their generation, as employees, and who you have today, what\u2019s the big difference?\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHis answer was like he was a sociologist\u2014he said: \u201cDennis, they don\u2019t know how to solve problems. Fourteen-, fifteen-, sixteen-year-olds\u2014they confront something, where they can\u2019t Google it\u2014they don\u2019t know how to press through, and solve problems, and lead their way through initiating. They become passive; they just sit there.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYour book\u2014that\u2019s really a synthesis of what you talk about in your book. Now, tell about the Christmas tree, because this illustrates it further.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>5:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Yes; that\u2019s a great summary. I was a college president for five years. I became a president at age 37; so I was young\u2014didn\u2019t think of myself as that different in age\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>You look like you\u2019re 32 right now; so\u2014[Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>My wife says: \u201c[He] is 45, looks 35, [and] acts 25,\u201d\u2014[Laughter]\u2014I\u2019m trying to grow up a little bit. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Well, you don\u2019t want to repeat your rookie year in marriage again\u2014that\u2019s the key.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>That is true.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Don\u2019t be a rookie!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>We married right out of undergrad. I <em>love<\/em> the 23 years of marriage God has blessed us with; but if I could re-live some of them, year one wouldn\u2019t be one I\u2019d pick.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Right!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Yes; me either. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>So, this Lutheran liberal arts college in Nebraska has a big basketball arena. Every year, as you\u2019re getting to Thanksgiving, they would decorate\u2014it was my first year there\u2014they would decorate this big tree in that kind of atrium as you enter the basketball arena. A number of our students were assigned with decorating the tree. It was\u2014I don\u2019t know\u201420 to 25 feet tall. These were really good kids. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>6:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThey were students who had jobs, either in the development and fundraising office or the athletic department; and these were highly-desirable jobs\u2014so these were impressive kids. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOur vice-president for advancement walked through the arena and saw all the kids getting ready to leave, having decorated the tree. The tree was only decorated on like the bottom nine feet, and then there were twelve feet above it that were completely naked! She saw them getting ready to leave; and she said: \u201cWhere are you all headed? What\u2019s going on here?\u201d They said, \u201cWell, we used up all the decorations.\u201d She said, \u201cYes; but you only decorated half the tree.\u201d One of the big kids spoke up and he said, \u201cWe didn\u2019t know how to get any decorations any higher.\u201d She paused and said: \u201cWell, was maintenance unresponsive? They refused to bring you a ladder?\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIt never really occurred to them that, since the desire would be to have ornaments equally spread over the tree, you probably should just solve that problem.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Amazing!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Do you think that that problem-solving ability is something that has been cultured out of our kids in our day?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>I think so. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>7:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThere\u2019s something that we\u2019re doing, right now, that is <em>strange<\/em> in human history. Historically, there was a distinction between childhood and adulthood, which was about dependent state and, ultimately, an independent state. Over the years, this category of adolescence emerged, which was kind of a special thing. Adolescence is a gift as long as it\u2019s a means to an end. It\u2019s an 18-month to four-year period kind of right around puberty, where we say: \u201cJust because your body went from being a child to being an adult doesn\u2019t mean your frontal lobe is fully formed and that you should quit school, full-time, and work, full-time, and go form a household and procreate. Not everything is aligned with adulthood just because you hit puberty.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut puberty\u2019s a pretty good marker that you\u2019re transitioning from childhood dependency to adult independence. We should be helping our kids come of age and learn to solve those problems as they become more and more productive to their family, and to their neighborhood, and to their broader community. Right now, we\u2019re just not doing that; our kids, by and large, go through puberty\u2014and then their mid-teen and their late-teen years\u2014and they don\u2019t really have any compulsion and necessity to work. Consumption kind of replaces the production that should lead to those kind of problem-solving skill formations.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>8:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Ben, in talking about this in your book, you say that parents are abandoning\u2014that\u2019s a strong word\u2014their children to Neverland. What do you mean by that word, \u201cabandonment,\u201d at that point?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>We do more generational segregation than anybody has ever done in human history. Historically, if you were 14 or 16 years old, you would have some interaction with newborns; you\u2019re going to have to help change diapers\u2014and care for people who are truly dependent\u2014and you\u2019re going to care for people, who are in their declining years at 70 or 80, and you\u2019re going to be around workers. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe take our kids and we basically segregate <em>most<\/em> of their waking hours only with other people that are of the exact same birth year. That\u2019s odd. I don\u2019t want 17-year-olds raising my 17-year-old, or 13-year-olds raising my 13-year-old. I want there to be good teachers, and pastors, and community leaders, and inputs; but I and my wife, as the parents\u2014we have a responsibility for building an environment.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>9:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI think we forget that Disney has remade Peter Pan as some sort of utopia, where it\u2019s idyllic to stay stranded in Neverland. The original Peter Pan\u2014it was a dystopia\u2014you didn\u2019t want to be stuck in childhood once you were three, four, five years into having an adult body. The Peter Pan character was actually a murderer; in the book, he kills people; but he has no historical memory of yesterday, and he has no thought of the consequences of tomorrow. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re building a world right now, by accident, where it\u2019s hard to tell ten-, and fifteen-, and twenty-, and twenty-five-year-olds apart. That\u2019s not good for them, and it\u2019s not good for our republic.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>And as a result, we\u2019re allowing adolescence to continue on into the 20s and even the 30s, with a ton of single people, who are now living with their parents as adults.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>The number one address for people, post-college graduation, now is to move back home with Mom and Dad. There\u2019s nothing wrong with an intergenerational household if you\u2019re building it, intentionally\u2014 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>10:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u2014young newlyweds having a baby, benefitting from Mom and Grandma and childcare and wisdom\u2014that\u2019s all great stuff if it\u2019s done on purpose. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat\u2019s not what\u2019s happening right now. We have a <em>drift<\/em> back to the household. Some of the data about 18- to 24-year-old males\u2014spending nearly half of their waking hours playing video games\u2014a huge share of them are spending almost half their waking hours playing video games. That\u2019s not healthy for them; and it\u2019s indicative of a broader problem we, the generation that should be raising them, have.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>No doubt about it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Talk from the perspective of having been a college president. How are kids doing today, thinking critically, about the issues of life?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>I know we\u2019re here, not to talk about politics, but to talk broader\u2014we\u2019re talking about family\u2014but also putting that in a context of broader civic life. There\u2019s polling now that 41 percent of Americans, under age 35, think the First Amendment is dangerous; because you might use your freedom of speech to say something that hurts someone else\u2019s feelings. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWell, hold on; back up a minute. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>11:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tActually, the <em>purpose<\/em> of the American Constitutional system is to create a framework for ordered liberty so that we can argue, and wrestle, and try to persuade people who have souls! Government is about force, and compulsion, and power. Government can\u2019t solve problems about our disagreements about theology, and heaven, and hell. I want a world where we\u2019re free from violence so we can invite people to our churches; so that we can wrestle in the public square; so that we can have people over for dinner; so that we can persuade our kids, as they come of age, about the good, the true, and the beautiful. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tRight now, what\u2019s happening is\u2014there\u2019s clearly a movement on college campuses, where we\u2019re thinking that people\u2014that psychology is the master discipline and our children are so fragile that they can\u2019t possibly encounter ideas they don\u2019t already agree with. Well, where I come from, that\u2019s the definition of education. I want to encounter ideas I don\u2019t agree with and find out: \u201cMaybe I\u2019m wrong, and I should be persuaded,\u201d or \u201cMaybe I\u2019m right, and I should try to love my neighbor and persuade them,\u201d but also, just come to understand their argument so that I know that the argument that I\u2019m embracing is one that I\u2019ve scrutinized.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>12:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>You know, there are two points I want to make about that. Number one, as you were talking, it just came to my mind\u2014that Constitution was written in the backdrop of the Judeo-Christian ethic in a biblical viewpoint of life. We\u2019re here, in the Museum of the Bible today\u2014the irony of that. That backdrop was to give us a way of relating to one another with respect, as a fellow image-bearer of God. Even somebody who doesn\u2019t agree with me\u2014around my political beliefs, or theological beliefs, or moral beliefs\u2014I\u2019m still called to love them \/ I\u2019m still called to have community with them.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut the second thing was\u2014that same Bible also called us to obey God and respect human life. I\u2019m thinking of our culture, right now, and the murder in that Texas church. The only thing that\u2019s going to rid our nation of this kind of foolish evil is a moral and spiritual awakening that begins in the souls of human hearts. I think that has to start in homes\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>13:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u2014moms and dads have to embed their children with the truth of the Bible and call their children to wisdom and not foolishness.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>So well-said. I think\u2014obviously, it is true that God places babies and children under the protective care of a mom and dad, who are modeling all of that. We get to pray, in the Lord\u2019s Prayer, to God the Father Almighty\u2014it\u2019s an <em>amazing<\/em> paradox in that phrase; right? Our fathers and we, as fathers or as mothers\u2014we\u2019re not almighty\u2014and the Almighty sounds so impersonal and distant; and yet, we have a Father Almighty. We get to anchor our kids in a household and in a structure of love that\u2019s taking seriously the fact that\u2014Dennis, exactly as you said\u2014they are image-bearers of God.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe American founding and the pairing of the Declaration and the Constitution is <em>really<\/em> a big screaming creedal argument about human dignity. We believe that everybody is created by God with unalienable rights. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>14:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGovernment doesn\u2019t give us rights! God gives us rights by nature, and government is our shared project to protect those rights and to create a public square free from violence so that you can do all those things, which are about the development, and nurture, and the full-flowering of human souls.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>And as you teach kids to think\u2014thinking <em>from<\/em> Scripture not just <em>to<\/em> Scripture\u2014but allowing their lives to be drawn from the words of God, which is what this museum that we\u2019re sitting in is all about. The Museum of the Bible is opening this weekend\u2014Bob and I are here to celebrate that. I know you\u2019ve [Ben] been through it as well. We need to call our nation back to the Scripture. I have a feeling the Green family will be calling our nation to do some things around the Bible, in years to come, that are anchored around this museum\u2014but more importantly\u2014the Bible.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>So why did a college president decide: \u201cI want to run for Senate. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>15:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u201cI want to go to Washington and be a part of an institution that may be less consequential than the university I\u2019m working in\u201d?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Yes; so I am involved in public life for a limited time, because I have a one-cheer-for-politics view of the world. We can\u2019t have a zero-cheers-for politics, because you\u2019d have anarchy and chaos in a fallen world of all of us descended from endemic sinners. We need to restrain evil; so government has a place. But we have <em>way<\/em> too many people involved in politics, who have a three-cheers-for-politics view of the world\u2014that it is the central institution of life\u2014it isn\u2019t true! \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tMy identity begins with the fact that I\u2019m a Christian \/ I\u2019m a redeemed sinner; then, I\u2019m a husband; then, I\u2019m a father; then, I\u2019m an American\u2014then, I head down that list somewhere\u2014and I\u2019m a Husker football addict, [Laughter] and I\u2019m a conservative; and then, somewhere after that, I\u2019m a Republican. But you have to have a sense of how you order your identities. I\u2019m Christian first; and then, I\u2019m a husband and a father; and then, I\u2019m an American; and then, I have this job for a while and I have my policy commitments. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>16:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut partisanship is not <em>nearly<\/em> enough to get out of bed for in the morning. Right now, we have so many families that are hollow \/ so many local communities that are hollow\u2014so many people that don\u2019t feel a lot of friendship. We have an epidemic of loneliness in this country. People are trying to <em>fill<\/em> in that tribal need in our soul with political tribes\u2014they\u2019re not satisfying!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>To what extent is government a part of the solution for where we are today in our country?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Government is a part of solving <em>certain<\/em> kinds of things; right? We need to maintain the common defense\u2014we have geo-political competitors, and we have cyber-attacks happening on the U.S. Government should be a part of the solution of protecting the unborn and celebrating life. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGovernment has specific responsibilities; but the most important things in life are a private sector\u2014not just-for-profit entities, like the small business or the company you work for; the entrepreneurship; or the app that you\u2019re building\u2014but not-for-profit entities in your church and the rotary club in your community. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>17:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCivil society and voluntary institutions are the center of life. Of those governmental institutions we need, more of them should be done of the local level. Washington [DC] has a really limited number of key responsibilities. When we try to do 5,000 of them, it turns out we don\u2019t do the most important 5 right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>When I read the Preamble, years ago, I remember it giving pretty specific delineation for what government is supposed to do. It feels like \u201cpromote the general welfare\u201d has kind of expanded to mean \u201canything and everything.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Yes; there is a\u2014we have a system that believes in limitless rights for people and very limited government. Right now, we\u2019re acting like the government is the author of our rights and the government has limitless powers. Our founders would be very confused by the current arrangement. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>So you say this is a limited-time job for you?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>I told Nebraskans when I was elected\u2014I won the primary election in the spring of 2014 and the general election in November of 2014\u2014and I told them both election nights: \u201cThis is a six-year calling. I will for four-and-a-half years do the best I can to serve them and not spend any time thinking about re-election.\u201d I think the city is <em>way<\/em> too preoccupied with people\u2019s own careers and their own re-election. Four-and-a-half years into it, my wife and I will sit down and pray and see what future callings we think might be in store for us.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>I want to go back to something you said, there, about all the different institutions that impact our nation. Ben, 41 years ago, Barbara and I stumbled into starting FamilyLife with two other couples, having no idea\u2014really, not strategically realizing that the family <em>is<\/em> the strongest creator of culture of any institution in our nation. Forty-one years later, I am more adamant and pound the table more for the moms and dads, who are doing the hard work of earning a living, hammering out a life, and bearing children \/ raising children in the next generation. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>19:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI am more convinced than ever we have to esteem them, value them, [and] cheer them on. You talk about the three cheers\u2014that\u2019s where the three cheers needs to be\u2014for families that are doing the hard work; but they\u2019re doing it in a spiritual way\u2014not just raising kids, who are going to be happy, and healthy, and wealthy\u2014but raising kids, who know right from wrong, and who know how to choose a biblical work ethic, who know how to engage the culture with thorny issues that we don\u2019t have answers for always \/ we kind of grapple our way through them.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI just want to say to those, who are listening, right now, to us\u2014the moms and dads\u2014you are heading up the institution that allows this democracy to continue. You go to other countries, and democracy doesn\u2019t work; because the family hasn\u2019t been based on the Bible and on Jesus Christ. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>20:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI know we\u2019re no longer \u201ca Christian nation\u201d in a sense that we might have been years ago\u2014we\u2019ve gotten too far away from it\u2014but I think now is the day to seize the moment and use these news events that we\u2019re hearing and teach your kids how to think about them from the Bible.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Yes; and as well, to find a way to praise the moms and dads in your neighborhood, starting locally. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen you said, Dennis, that the family is the primary institution of culture, I just\u2014as a guy who grew up around farming\u2014hear the word, \u201cculture,\u201d and you hear, \u201cagriculture,\u201d\u2014 and the environment that you\u2019re creating to <em>nurture<\/em> those products that are going to come into harvest in the future. Moms and dads are doing that, and it is <em>hard work<\/em>. It isn\u2019t just our calling to love our own kids; it\u2019s our calling to cheer and encourage those moms and dads, down the street, who are doing great and hard work\u2014and flawed, and fallible, and imperfect work\u2014but to go to them and to cheer them when they\u2019ve been there\u2014 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>21:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u2014the voice of love that says to your kid, \u201cYou\u2019re accepted, and you\u2019re created in the image of God.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>And I have a feeling there are a number of our listeners, right now, saying, \u201cI\u2019d like to buy him a cup of coffee.\u201d [Laughter] Of course, they couldn\u2019t buy you a cup of coffee; can we?\u2014we can\u2019t do that anymore. [Laughter] But anyway, if you\u2019d like to have a cup of coffee with him, get his book, <em>The Vanishing American Adult<\/em>. You\u2019re going to be sitting down with a very bright writer. He\u2019s going to stimulate you to love and good deeds, because you\u2019re calling us back to our spiritual roots.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBen Sasse, thanks for joining us on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>It\u2019s been a pleasure to be with you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis: <\/strong>Fight the good fight where you are, brother, and finish strong.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ben: <\/strong>Thanks for your ministry.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>One of the things we talk about, a lot, on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is the need for moms and dads to be intentional and to have the long view in mind\u2014not just be parenting in the moment\u2014but be parenting purposefully and intentionally, with goals in mind and objectives. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>22:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd that\u2019s where I think our listeners are going to resonate with the book, <em>The Vanishing American Adult<\/em>, by Ben Sasse. It\u2019s a book that we have in our <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> Resource Center. As Dennis said, we\u2019d encourage you to go online to get a copy of the book. Again, it\u2019s called <em>The Vanishing American Adult<\/em>. You can order a copy from us, online, at FamilyLifeToday.com; or call 1-800-FLTODAY to order. The website, again\u2014FamilyLifeToday.com; or call 1-800-358-6329\u2014that\u2019s 1-800-\u201cF\u201d as in family, \u201cL\u201d as in life, and then the word, \u201cTODAY.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou know, what we\u2019ve talked about today is how critical \/ how important it is for families to be central to all that we do in a culture. Here, at FamilyLife, our goal is to effectively develop godly marriages and families; because it\u2019s our strong conviction that godly marriages and families will change the world\u2014 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>23:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\u2014they\u2019ll do it one home at a time. So, three cheers for families\u2014that\u2019s what we\u2019re all about here. We want to provide you the help and hope necessary to accomplish what you\u2019re trying to do with your kids and in your marriage.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe appreciate those of you who partner with us to make <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> possible. We\u2019re a listener-supported ministry, and we depend on your support to be able to continue the work that we\u2019re doing. So, \u201cThanks,\u201d to those of you who are monthly Legacy Partners; and \u201cThanks,\u201d to those of you who will, from time to time, call or go online and make a donation in support of this ministry. We\u2019d love to hear from you. In fact, if you\u2019re a regular listener and you\u2019ve never gotten in touch with us, today would be a great day for you to make an online donation at FamilyLifeToday.com; or call to donate: 1-800-358-6329\u20141-800-FL-TODAY. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>24:00<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou can also mail your donation to us at <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> at PO Box 7111, Little Rock, AR; our zip code is 72223.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow, tomorrow, we will be back at the Museum of the Bible. In fact, we\u2019re going to introduce you to the man who had the idea for this museum, back a decade ago. We\u2019ll hear about this amazing place. I hope you can tune in to hear about the Museum of the Bible tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, along with our entire broadcast production team. On behalf of our host, Dennis Rainey, I'm Bob Lepine. We will see you back tomorrow for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas; a Cru<sup>\u00ae <\/sup>Ministry. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\tHelp for today. Hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts to you. However, there is a cost to produce them for our website. If you\u2019ve benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright <sup>\u00a9<\/sup> 2017 FamilyLife. All rights reserved.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/\">www.FamilyLife.com<\/a>\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t1\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>","theme_header_position":"","post_header_is_sticky":"","is_header_overlay":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast\/304766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/podcast"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304766"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304766"},{"taxonomy":"podcast_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_series?post=304766"},{"taxonomy":"cwp_profile","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cwp_profile?post=304766"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=304766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}