Past generations of Americans grew up in a country that was proud of its culture. It had a rich heritage filled with the Statue of Liberty, Baseball, and Apple Pie.

The first need we experience as humans is the need to belong. During times of difficulty, culture helps us overcome by giving us a sense of structure, ritual, and habits.

Unfortunately, many of our “clever” thought leaders have forgotten this. They have not only underestimated how much humans need this – they have actively taught against it. Some are teaching us to feel ashamed of our heritage. Some even go further to tell us we need to be ashamed of our gender, ethnicity, and religion.

The solution is not to go to the opposite extreme – post-election I have noticed that many Americans are extremely angry. “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15 (ESV).

While it is essential that we raise self-confident children, we should also teach them that “in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26–28 (ESV).

And, finally, we should not aid the ignorant to step into eternal damnation by neglecting to tell the truth on uncomfortable topics. It is a fact that God only created two genders – male and female (Gen.1:27). If we give up on this image of God (Rom.1:23) by “creating” a state of dysphoria then God will give us up in the lusts of our hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of our bodies among
ourselves (Rom1:24-27).

Friend, what would our world be like if everyone were kind – only speaking the truth in love?