12 Dec Christ & A Christian Youth

When King Solomon, King of Israel and son of the King David, started writing the book of Ecclesiastes, he was almost at the verge of death. He poured out all his experience and insights in this book and wrote, “Rejoice, O Young man, in your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.”(Ecclesiastes 11:9)

India, a land known for its culture, tradition and knowledge, has always given importance to its youth. Today, India is on its way to becoming the next superpower of the world, and what’s more interesting is the fact that we have one advantage which many other nations lack. India has the largest population of youth in the world. A research done by Girija Shivkumar for the ‘The Hindu” in 2013 says,

“By 2020, India is set to become the World’s youngest country with 64% of its population in the working age group. With the West, Japan and even China aging, this demographic potential offers India and its growing economy an unprecedented edge that economists believe could add a significant percent to the GDP growth rate”

65% of Indians are under the age of 35, 50% of the Indian population are under the age of 25.We are an amazingly young country. We are the one, youthful and dynamic population ready to work and transform the world and achieve what china did in the last few decades.
But it is not enough to have the youth power, we have to learn how to control this power. This power is self-destructive. if we can’t direct it towards the right goal, it can wreak havoc and lead to destruction. Youth are the most volatile of demographic groups; they can be easily swayed by people who want to destroy our society. It is very important to inculcate in them a sense of understanding and the knowledge of how to use their power to change the world. While many may argue that one’s sunset years are the hardest, my own idea is that the period designated as youth might be the most challenging.

As a youth myself, I can tell you it is a period of utter frustration. It is a time when we are not young enough to be controlled by others but at the same time not old enough to understand the intricacies of life. With the quick availability of knowledge through the internet and the vicious web of social networks, our interest of interacting with people in real life is lost into oblivion. What we really need at this crucial point is the guidance of God, and here comes the importance of Christ in the life of a youth. As King Solomon said, “Remember also your creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near to which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them” (Ecclesiastes 12:1).
But why Christ? Why not something or someone else?

The answer to this question lies in the fact that in this world of manipulating and fake information the only thing we can truly rely on is the Holy Bible. Unlike any other source of information, it never gives us knowledge that is destructive; rather it helps us to construct our life and family. The Bible is not merely a book; it’s a philosophy of how to lead a perfect life, a gigantic library which provides us every guidance we need in life. When we surrender ourselves to the guidance of Jesus Christ, he grants us unlimited blessing in whatever work we perform. Even that is also the vision of UESI, ‘to evangelize the students of India, nurture them as disciples of Lord Jesus Christ that they may serve the church and the society’.
After so many years since its genesis, it has now reached to that level where we can hopefully say that in the near future when India will be a superpower, our Christian youths will be a part of that achievement.

Animesh Das from Purulia, West Bengal is a student of English Literature at Guru Ghasidas Central University, Chhattisgarh. He is part of the EU ministry since 2008.