In one sense, there is no such thing as a second generation Christian because God's kingdom is entered through a turnstile, one at a time. No one can buy a ticket on our behalf. Yet there are families in which Christianity seems to dominate like a genetic trait. Not mine, however. Although there are many believers salted through my extended family, I consider myself a first generation Christian because knowing Christ was not taught in my home. I learned about Jesus at a teen Bible study. At the age where many second generation Christians turn away from Christ, I was on my spiritual honeymoon.
I think we do a disservice to second plus generation Christian young people when we expect them to understand and react to spiritual things the same as we first generations do. A plane crash survivor will react differently to flying than one who has simply been told stories about a plane crash. Second hand knowledge does not have the same impact as first hand experience. At some point in my parenting I realized that I expected a level of spiritual perception in my children that I had reached only because of my life experiences. My children would have different experiences and their own spiritual journeys.
There are many advantages to having a Christian heritage, Christian homes have less divorce, abuse, addiction, poverty and sexual sin. I wandered before Christ found me and so will my descendants. But at the end of their wandering they will discover Jesus is as forgiving and faithful to them as He has been to the generations before. Second hand spiritual robes, no matter how beautiful, are still hand-me-downs. The next generation needs Designer clothes.
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