YOU DONT WANT TO READ THIS POST | People of the Second Chance

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on all things People of the Second Chance.

Posted by Mike Foster:

You may not want to read this post. It is on the depressing side. But trust me, it is a big reason why I think the discussion of grace and failure are so important.

When I wrote Gracenomics I had an overarching premise that drove my thinking.

That premise was simply this:

We have just experienced a “decade of deception” and now are entering into a “decade of disappointment.” Here is what I mean…

THE DECADE OF DECEPTION CAN BE SUMMED UP BY THESE FALSEHOODS:

1. We actually believed we could own things we could not afford.

2. We believed we were safe and insulated from terrorists and outside threats. (9/11)

3. If you work hard then your job is secure and a nice pension will be waiting for you.

4. House prices will always go up in value.

5. You could trust politicians about the reasons for going to war. (Iraq and WMDs)

6. If you get a college education you will have a well paying job waiting for you.

7. The government could always bail us out if we got into real trouble. It can’t.

8. Financial institutions were secure and had proper oversight. Nope.

9. Religious institutions were a symbol of integrity and purity. The Catholic Church sex abuse epidemic and church pastor scandals has completely unhinged that idea.

I could go on but I won’t. This is already a bit depressing.

These are the lies that have been exposed on a massive public scale. These things we thought were true are no longer valid beliefs. We had been living in the decade of deception.

But that was the last 10 years. Now let’s talk about the next 10.

I NOW BELIEVE WE ARE HEADING INTO A DECADE OF DEALING WITH DISAPPOINTMENT.

Because we have gone through a decade of deception and entering a decade of disappointment, we will face new dynamics.

This will impact your organization. Your leadership. Your lifestyle. Let me list a few thoughts:

1. The jobs shipped overseas are not coming back. The 4G iPhone costs $6.54 to make in China. It would cost 10 times as much to make in the US.

2. People will want to numb their hurt and seek to escape. They will do this through addictions, overeating, drugs or other destructive habits.

3. You must talk openly in your corporate culture about weakness and failure. This is a theme of life and culture now. So make it an ongoing theme of your company too.

4. People won’t believe or accept the hype, spin and cliches anymore. Public communications and marketing will change.

5. The core of a person’s identity(mostly found in their successes) has been challenged. It will be important to help people navigate this core identity crisis.

6. Leaders must ooze character and integrity. I believe this will be the defining trait of whether people follow or not. Competence and charisma are overrated.

7. Churches that give simplistic answers to someone’s real problems aren’t relevant anymore. People won’t put up with that crap anymore. Prosperity gospel? Seriously, hows that working these days?

8. We all need to get a lot more comfortable with smaller, lesser and slower. Raises, bonuses, stock performance and growth curves will be different now.

9. A reset and realignment of expectations for an entire generation of 70 million Millenials. What happens when you are promised one thing all your life and now realize it isn’t true?

10. Fast cash, instant millionaires or get rich quick Bernie Madoff schemes are now looked at differently. People are now more skeptical and less trusting. Also, what little money people have, they are holding it tight.

11. I believe people will become self focused and concerned about their own struggle. Motivating them to care about an injustice, poverty or need 5000 miles away will become more difficult.

12. People will project their pain on others. It’s very human to do so. Don’t be surprised if you become a target.

13. Dissatisfaction leads to the polarization of groups, vicious attacks on others and people’s anger being expressed in unhealthy ways. Just look at today’s politics for proof.

14. Many will want to quit, give up and stop dreaming about a better tomorrow.

And one more final depressing nugget.

The news reports the US unemployment rate is at 9%. In reality it is more like 17% when you include those who have given up looking for work or those who are underemployed. The underemployed is the guy who has a PHD, who 2 years ago was pulling down $200k a year and is now having to work at Wal Mart for 9 bucks an hour.

People are scared. Worlds have fallen apart. Caution is in the air. And we are entering into a decade of managing massive disappointments in our lives.

It won’t be easy and I don’t mean to bum you out with this post. We all need to work hard to discover answers to these hard truths.

I think this next 10 years can be an incredible opportunity to help individuals.

I guess this is why POTSC is here. These are the conversations that we must have.

Grace isn’t just a nice idea…it is the answer for the next decade of living.

Subscribe to Blog | ShareThis

This entry was posted in gracenomics. Bookmark the permalink.

http://www.jagdesignideas.com Joel Glovier

Awesome – seriously. The truth is that we ignore the truth when prosperity abounds.

I think this next 10 years can be an incredible opportunity to help individuals.

I guess this is why POTSC is here. These are the conversations that we must have.

Amen, and amen. I truly believe God uses times of darkness to reveal the light that is in Himself. Jesus said it this way, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall rejoice.”
http://creativefuelstudios.com/the-talent/jim-gray/ Jim Gray

Mike, i might have to unsubscribe if this pace of daily thought-provokingnessism’s continue.

On a para-serious note…I recently read “Linchpin” and the one thing I walked away from was how society preached a bunch of doctrine-soaked-stuff to us that won’t do us any good …
http://www.mohan37.com/ mohan37

Not depressing, Mike. You’re just stating facts that have always been true: the world is a broken place, as it has been for thousands of years. We just forgot. We thought we could be happy and healthy without a personal God. We trusted priests over the Holy Spirit, built churches around pastors instead of Christ, naively believed in peoples’ Godly intentions and calling without examining their Fruit. We started to falsely believe that God had promised prosperity, safety, and security on this earth, and forgot all about the Eternal Weight Of Glory.

your responses are excellent: accept what can’t be changed, scale back on worldy expenditure, focus on reflecting the character and integrity of God, and be prepared to confront a hurting generation with the love of Christ.

Great post, man. A call to arms.
http://twitter.com/gospelpimp Cyril Scott Jones

Incredibly insightful! I am not sure I agree with every point, but for the most part I think you are spot on. This is what the church and Christians should be wrestling with how to be the light in this time when the many believe God is nowhere to be found.
http://www.evangelicalmonk.com/apps/blog/show/5138519-living-out-grace Bill H

I was reading Falsani’s Sin Boldly, and she references British theologian, John V. Taylor, who said, “The presence of God can be experienced as much between people as in them and that God’s grace is what make the connections between people that wouldn’t happen otherwise.” Your insight identifies the greater likelihood of people being able to be the grace extenders in the times of darkness. May POTSC keep opening eyes. Powerful vision, thanks.
http://www.facebook.com/chelseapatricia Chelsea Patricia

Oh, wow. So true. Very succinct and accurate.

All of those negative things to come, we must focus on NOT becoming them. We must focus on not projecting the hurt, on caring for others instead of only caring about ourselves.
ShaunAustin

I agree that these are all possibilities but no one can really predict the future. When on a bike if you look at the ground to long them you end up there. I think that there will be tons of opportunity in these next days of “tough living”. Ultimately we reap what we sow and these times are what that scripture really means. Sure we need grace. We always have and always will. I thank God for grace. What I hope we will learn is how to live within our means. The option of fake it till you make it will be a lot harder to pull off. God will only give us more when we have been good with little. We need a restart… A plan of living with little so we can be taught as we are given more. We need everyone to own their part. So many people live off of the government. Rich people pay more in taxes. How are they supposed to create jobs if they keep having to give more in taxes because they are good business men and women. We need an equal tax so the rich can offer more and the bottom feeders have to pay their part as well so they might care about voting for something that they are actually paying taxes on. Enough about the politics. We all need God. We all need grace. Thank God for Jesus Christ that offers us both. We do need to get back to basics. We do need to understand that we live in fantasy land sometimes but now we need to stay focused on reality and live for God. It is what we were designed for and in no other way will we feel filled like we do when we are in line with a purpose of life from God.
http://thoughtsaboutnothing.com @kylelreed

Though this post is disappointing and really depressing it is also very exciting.
There is a huge monumental task ahead of not just america but the world, the exciting thing is we have a savior. And if I look at everything that you just said and try to figure it out on my own I don’t think I would want to continue, but knowing that God does amazing amazing things in and through broken people makes the hair on my arms stand up.

Lets do it
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

that is the challenge isnt it? to be aware of what is going on in our life and others and then respond accordingly…hopefully with love and grace
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

love that! so very true! and cathleen falsani rocks IMHO!
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

jim, i understand if you unsubscribe j/k….i would totally agree with Godin on that point…people are more skeptical than ever about institutions(govnt, religious, etc) and the doctrine…and frankly, they have a right to challenge it…
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

im with ya kyle! this is hard stuff but i also believe it can be energizing…my hope is we make a positive choice of how we live and react to these new truths/conditions…
Billhamp

Agreed on about 75% of this Mike. I would encourage you though to not fall into believing the lies. America is still a place where you can make things happen. You can still create opportunity for yourself and, in turn, change the lives of others. It’s primarily about attitude. People are hurting and I couldn’t agree more about creating an environment where we can share our burdens and encourage one another. However, this can turn real quick to a “woe is me” attitude and that doesn’t do anyone any good.
Jay

Maybe this is a time to reflect and see where the “American Dream” isn’t necessarily God’s plan?
hubert

I kind of agree on the first part of the post.

The decade of disappointment is hardly it. People will always find a way to the new riches. Instead of looking to the developing world as “they took our JOBS!” Let’s look at them as a possibility of succeeding there and finding opportunities for success and money. Opportunities are everywhere. Where one man get poor another gets rich. We most importantly have to be innovative and pragmatic. This is not an end of the world. It’s a merely a shift of reality from perspective of America.

I don’t know maybe the fact that I am come from one of these developing countries makes my outlook and expectations quite different from other people. But that’s how I see it.

But this is just my humble 2cents
Gallen

my friend, there is nothing new under the sun. deception and disappointment have always been around in many forms and always will be. each generation has to learn anew for themselves and oft times, the same generation has to learn it again when they are older. yes, the next 10 years can be an incredible time to help others, just as each new today is, if we will but see it.
Modern Reject

Rahm Emanuel said, at the beginning of the current Presiden’t administration that we “cannot let a crisis go to waste.” He received some flack for that comment by Republicans but the phrase rings in my ear as I read this post.

The next 10 years will undoubtedly hold great opportunity for the faithfulness and consistency of Christ to reign. Depressing as the following years may be, believers can either succumb to the bad news or be outspoken voices proclaiming the Good News.

God has always been in the paradigm shifting business and this time is no different.

Thanks for a thoughtful post.
bill (cycleguy)

I believe your last line is absolutely the truth: I think this next 10 years can be an incredible opportunity to help individuals. We (the church) needs to look and see what can be done instead of bemoaning the fact that things have tanked, we have lost our big buildings that we can’t afford to pay for, and life is not a bed of roses (prosperity garbage, I mean un-gospel, notwithstanding). What a fantastic time it is for the church to rise up!
http://theoutlet.wordpress.com/ Sherie

Mike, as I read this I thought back on things I have walked through over the last couple of years. Maybe I was on the early side of the decade of disappointment and have it out of the way (I hope!). I definitely have walked through 4-7, 9 & 14. I think numbing our hurts has been present even in the past decade, and maybe even more than it will be in the future because I see #3, talking about weakness and failure as a very positive thing in the midst of this list. At least in certain circles there is a great movement toward transparency and authenticity happening that is encouraging and hopeful in the face of the disappointment.

I say that I have walked through it though because it has changed, and it changed because of loving kindness, compassion, and grace that was shown to me. Sometimes those seem like simple things, but they open doors, doors that reach beyond the power of this world into the spiritual world. Tonight I get to give a testimony about the impact of compassion and grace and how it lead to my transformed life. While I do believe you have pointed out the possible future we are moving toward, I also believe that this doesn’t have to be our future and I am going to do all I can to share grace and change my corner of the world, having faith it will spread and spread and spread. These are conversations we need to have, I just hope we don’t stop at talking about it and the world sees that we believe it and live it too.
Jaybar

This is the biggest load of victim mentality crap I have ever read. If you actually believed any of the stated so called falsehoods in the first place you are a naive sheep and deserve to languish in the self imposed decade of disappointment. Your station in life is purely in your own hands and until you believe differently you will stay there.
http://www.tonyjalicea.com Tony Alicea

Mike, this is awesome! If there’s not hope in your last few lines, I don’t know what hope is.
Anonymous

What an opportunity to be light in a dark world! This is a unique time to exemplify love and hope in an environment that lacks optimism. The more life seems complicated, the bigger our opportunity to shine.

Ultimately, I think time has really altered my priorities and sense of purpose. For that, I’m actually really thankful.
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

totally agree hubert…what i believe about jobs is that we need adaptation..or new innovation…or entrepreneurship…but to believe those jobs that were loss to overseas markets are coming back to the US is naive…and will lead to greater disappointment…
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

great add…definitely would never want to paint a hopeless situation or give permission to a “woe is me” lifestyle…attitude is absolutely critical…my overarching point in the post is to say things have changed big time…it is a unique time in history…my general concern is that we would resort to the same solutions, strategies, conversations, habits, leadership styles, and messages that IMHO are completely disconnected from reality…i truly believe opportunity exists for those able to navigate the realities of these cultural, economic, psychological and institutional shifts…
http://www.thebetaversion.org Greg Simmons

I’m not sure I agree with all the points listed….mainly b/c it will take a while to digest everything you covered. But the thrust of the post is spot on. I have been wrestling with major concerns regarding the current state of most churches/ministries and what the future holds for them. IMO, the financial boom and stability of the late 1980s and 1990s caused many groups to lose focus. Perhaps these tough times will force organizations to do some deep reviews about what they are focusing on. I pray that is the case.

It’s not about buildings, programs, productions and personalities – it’s about people.
http://twitter.com/MikeFoster mike foster

loving your thots and input! great discussion everyone!
patricia

well said.
http://calebmagnino.com/life/all-eyes-on-us/ All Eyes on Us – Create / Communicate / Influence

[...] Take a quick moment and read the blog here. [...]
Jason Wert

Fantastic post. “Many will want to quit, give up and stop dreaming about a better tomorrow.” A lot of people have already done that because they don’t believe a better tomorrow is possible. That kind of ties in with your question “What happens when you are promised one thing all your life and now realize it isn’t true?”
Aray1206

2. People will want to numb their hurt and seek to escape. They will do this through addictions, overeating, drugs or other destructive habits
**This is nothing new. This has gone on for centuries. Those who overcome will survive. I do not choose weakness.
8. We all need to get a lot more comfortable with smaller, lesser and slower. Raises, bonuses, stock performance and growth curves will be different now.
**no kidding. just because we CHOOSE less, does not mean we accept failure.

3. You must talk openly in your corporate culture about weakness and failure. This is a theme of life and culture now. So make it an ongoing theme of your company too.

**If we make weakness and failure an ongoing theme of our company…we will surely fail. Those who choose NOT to accept failure or weakness will prevail. I do not choose weakness.

Maybe we should take a hard look at what we consider SUCCESS and what we consider FAILURE.
Penny

Very scary reality and it is why we must pray pray pray.
http://www.religionsucketh.com/2010/11/02/se7en-23/ se7en | religion sucketh

[...] experienced a “decade of deception” and now are entering into a “decade of disappointment.” Grace isn’t just a nice idea…… it is the answer for the next decade of living.Pastor Tim Smith of Mars Hill Church with two posts on the Holy Spirit, explaining who he is, what [...]
http://leightonhart.wordpress.com/2010/11/24/wednesday-wisdom-2/ Wednesday wisdom | My Best Investments

[...] You Don’t Want To Read This Post by Mike Foster at People of the Second Chance. Mike gets real about where we’ve been and the opportunity that presents for us in the days ahead. [...]

Oct 26