What kids believe

I was reading a blog today by David Staal, the president of Kids Hope USA.
This is an interesting article about the need to be mentor.
One line caught my attention. He wrote W"hat you believe by the time you're 13 is what you'll die believing." That made me pause. It made me think how important our Bibleland program is with shaping faith. Below is a few paragraphs from his article.
He wrote:
Deeper reflection on 2004 shows that 11,265 U.S. children were born on this day (actually every day, on average). Applying other statistical averages, of those 11,265 children born on this single day in 2004: 

• 3,380 will not graduate from high school
• 3,266 live in a fatherless home
• 2,478 live in poverty
• 2,254 self-describe as lonely
• 2,027 victims of reported abuse
• 1,013 have ADHD (698 receive no treatment)
• 5,858 admit to not attending church

And that’s just one day’s worth of kids. One day.

Because they were all born today in 2004, let’s wish them a Happy 13^th Birthday. Actually, that’s a reason for real concern. Researcher George Barna published data that led him to conclude, “In essence, what you believe by the time you’re 13 is what you’ll die believing.”  

Soberly think about what those kids, born on this day in 2004, now believe about love, hope, opportunity, and how the world works. Not a happy thought, yet an accurate picture that provides high definition for why kids need mentors. Do the math; multiply each of those one-day figures by 365 to determine just the number of 12-year-olds that fall into those categories. What about ages six through eleven? The number grows crazy fast.

To answer the original question; these are the kids who need mentors. For the next question, addressing why churches and their attendees should care, consider the words from someone America celebrates in January also. According to Dr. Martin Luther King, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?”

What many people need most in this world is one person, just one, willing to spend time, to offer encouragement, to prove that there is someone who cares. Who listens. Smiles. And along the way stubbornly believes in the goodness that exists in every heart — young or old. Someone whose simple presence paints a hope-filled picture of how life could be. Or should be.

Here is the link to the full article. What kids believe