“O God, from my youth, you have taught me and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me until I proclaim your power to another generation, your power to all those to come.” (Psalm 71:17-18, NIV)

This passage means so much to me. I can recall vividly that some years ago, I was sharing this exact passage with my leadership team just before the baton of leadership was handed over to me. 

Now what is the psalmist trying to tell us here? He is trying to tell us that winning the youth doesn’t start with a programme – it starts with a passion, it starts with a godly purpose. 

The psalmist came to know the Lord when he was young and, ever since, he has been sharing and proclaiming the wondrous deeds of God. Everything he did – his thoughts, his pattern, his life, his actions – reflected the wondrous deeds of God.

He says now he has grey hair, and this is his prayer: God, don’t forsake me. I want to make sure that the next generation and the generations to come get to hear of Your wondrous deeds. I desire to proclaim Your power and Your might to the youth. (Psalm 71:18)

Friends, this is where it starts. We need that infused passion and if we don’t have it, we must ask the Lord for it. We want to see not only our children saved, not only our biological kids saved and not only the children and the youth in our church ministries saved. 

We want to see our nation’s youths saved, the churched and the unchurched come to know Christ. 

If we have this passion, our prayers will come forth very beautifully. We would say: God, don’t forsake us, because we still have a mission at hand. We want to proclaim Your work, and Your deeds to the young so that they would know about You through me. 

God’s heart for the generations to come

Here’s one thing that I know we are concerned about, especially the older we get. We are concerned that we’re not relevant to the young people.

Believe me, I used to do youth ministry for seven years. Now I’m at the age where I’m not sure how relevant I am. 

But it doesn’t start with relevance. Look at this passage. It starts with the revelation of the truth that God’s heart and desire is to win the youth. His heart is to see generations come to know Him. So whatever age you are, brother and sister, you have a part to play. 

As we pray this passage into our hearts, we can begin to infuse God’s desire to see the young come to know Him. Isn’t that an awesome thing? We need more of this, my friends. We need to see more of the passion of God in our lives to win the young. Let us pray:

Heavenly Father, we need Your help. We want to see generations come to know You, O God. We know that programmes are wonderful, but that is insufficient. 

O God, it starts with passion. God, would You give us such deep passion, more than we’ve ever had before, so that when we see the little ones not only in church but everywhere we go, there will be such a deep, heartfelt desire to spread the Gospel to them, to share our lives with them, to be generous with them, to love them and to give them hope for their future. 

We give You thanks. We pray this in Jesus’ precious name, Amen.  

Reflect

1. How has the Lord been faithful to you since your youth?

2. Why is God’s heart so passionate for the next generation to know Him?

3. What is one thing God is leading you to begin doing to proclaim Him to the next generation? 

Pray

1. Ask the Lord to ignite a deep passion within you for the salvation of young people. Pray that you are filled with a godly purpose to proclaim His wondrous deeds and power to the next generation, in the same way the Psalmist did. Pray for a greater manifestation of this passion in your life and in the lives of others.

2. Pray for the hearts of the youth today to be receptive to the Word of God. Ask God to stir in them a deep hunger for spiritual truth, to seek and find Him amidst the distractions of the world. Pray that they may encounter God in personal and transformative ways. Pray that, through God’s love, they become the future bearers of His Word.

3. Pray that God helps you stay relevant to the young people, regardless of your age. Pray for wisdom to understand their context and relate to them effectively. Ask God for the ability to communicate His love in a way that resonates with the youth, ensuring that His message transcends generational boundaries.