The Dying Fad of Common Sense

Written by Vinnie Tumia

Reading the national news on any given day offers compelling evidence that common sense has gone the way of fads from yesteryear. It has less of a chance of coming back than nylon bell-bottoms! What was once obviously right or wrong is now questioned in both directions.

The modern family may be one of the most deficient common sense areas of this generation. It seems that life has tricked some parents into believing that, no matter what, everything will turn out alright. They just hope for the best, while doing nothing proactively.

Here is an intriguing perspective from God.

Job 39:13-17 “[The ostrich] leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust, And forgetteth that the foot may crush them, or that the wild beast may break them. She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers: her labour is in vain without fear; Because God hath deprived her of wisdom, neither hath he imparted to her understanding.”

The ostrich leaves the survival of her offspring to chance. She puts her eggs where they are prone to the dangers of wild animals and wayward boots, leaving them in the middle of a well-trodden path. Unfortunately, she doesn’t see the obvious risks. The worst part of the story is that her “kids” suffer from her simplicity more than she does. (“She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers”).

The hands-off approach to parenting with limited time together, and even less mentoring, does not work.

Parents today must heed careful warning. The hands-off approach to parenting with limited time together, and even less mentoring, does not work. The assumption that parent-child friendship will trump bad behavior is faulty at best. Parents often conclude it’s more loving to overlook wrong behavior than address issues and rock the boat. This way of thinking brings risk as significant as leaving a helpless baby in the middle of a busy highway.

This neglect then renders ineffective the things we do right (“her labor is in vain without fear”). It seems that the family dilemma of this generation is hands-off parenting, leaving our children to figure out life- hopefully with as few scars as possible.

Let’s not lower ourselves to the futility of the ostrich, but move our families from the danger zone with intentional mentoring and quality time. It’s challenging and exhausting work, but always worth the effort.

• Schedule regular time together.
• Find a ministry to do jointly.
• Do chores together rather than everyone on their own.
• Pray for a young, godly mentor for teenagers.
• Find a book to read and discuss.
• Be your kid’s biggest fan, and attend his or her events.