September 1st, 2026

Dear Friends,

“What could possibly go wrong?”

That sounds like the introduction to a horror story or a YouTube short about somebody’s foolishness leading to disaster, doesn’t it? As it turns out, it’s a question with much deeper implications and one that is answered very differently by different generations.

An article in The Atlantic (2015) titled “The Coddling Of The American Mind” (Lukianoff and Haidt) begins, “In the name of emotional well-being, college students are increasingly demanding protection from words and ideas they don’t like. Here’s why that’s disastrous for education and mental health.” Later in the article, the authors state: “Safetyism is the cult of safety — an obsession with eliminating threats (both real and imagined) to the point at which people become unwilling to make reasonable trade-offs demanded by other practical and moral concerns.” They add: “Safetyism deprives young people of the experiences that their anti fragile minds need, thereby making them more fragile, anxious, and prone to see themselves as victims.”

Let me translate this into some practical thoughts. First, the more you coddle your kids (or yourself) curating their lives (or yours) in order to keep them from exposure to negative influence or negative outcomes, the more unable to cope they (or you) become. Our characters are literally developed in difficulties and failures (though, not exclusively so). This does not mean that we should be willing to experience anything without thought of risk. It means that we need to be realistic about the risk and whether a potential outcome is worth that risk. I recently spoke to a group of teens, urging them to learn to live wisely. Then, with a twinkle in my eye, I told that that, in order to live wisely, they would have to make some foolish decisions.

Second, if you don’t confront risk and hardship, you become isolated, egotistical and weak — physically, emotionally, and spiritually. You become increasingly isolated because the list of things you can do safely, the people with whom you can feel safe all the time, keeps decreasing with the increase in your demand for safety. In pursuing this course, you obviously become more egotistical because you become the only person that matters in a given situation. And, of course, spiritually, the more risk averse or avoidant you are, the less you are living by faith. You are actually living with the lie that you, or someone else, has all the power necessary to keep you from any form of harm or discomfort or ignorance.

Life is risky. James reminds us that we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. We can make plans but we have to recognize the impact of uncertainty on our plans. It is not foolish to risk or to adventure; it is foolish to risk unmindfully, without thought for the stewardship of your life (what does God want for you? what has God called you to do and be?). But, risk we must. Relationships are built on risk and struggle. Bodies develop strength through struggle and exertion. Faith gets stronger because we believe enough to begin to risk and trust.

In this world, many things can go wrong — and they will. The Christian message is, “Do not fear; for I am with you. Do not anxiously look about, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Risk wisely, and grow!

Blessings!

Doug