What can we do about children regarding mental health, screen time and instability?

on Jun 5, 2026

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Q: The three biggest headlines about children center around mental health, screen time and instability. This is heartbreaking and reminiscent of when I grew up in the 1960s. I can remember my grandmother saying that the 1960s generation was going to experience overwhelming trouble when they became parents and grandparents. I believe we’re seeing that. Even mental health professionals are left in a quandary. Where do we go from here? We’re losing generations of kids. – D.A.

A: Young people desperately search for purpose and meaning in life. They desire fulfillment, and many do not grow up in Christian homes. Others have the joy of growing up in church yet walk away when they leave home.

Those who grew up in the troubled 1960s in America were told by the media, the rock music culture, and their friends that the values held by their parents and grandparents were old-fashioned. They threw off what they regarded as encumbrances in favor of alternate lifestyles and “doing your own thing.” There was widespread cultural support for their ideas and behavior. “Doing your own thing” became the “in” thing to do.

Those who bought into the ’60s counterculture mentality and believed the lies they were told are now having trouble communicating with their own children and grandchildren the necessity of the values they rejected. Having overdosed on drugs and “free” love (which turned out not to be free at all), the flower children of the ’60s “embraced psychiatry as something to be relied on,” according to articles written.

The Bible will give guidance and direction to those who trust in Jesus Christ and follow Him. Far too many young people have no spiritual or emotional roots. They’ve been deprived of values by an agnostic and contemporary culture. God’s plan provides the redemption of sinful hearts, and He is the source of salvation and of all wisdom – no matter the age.

========

(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)