Last fall, I was here in Indianapolis speaking at two donor events for the Central Indiana Community Foundation. In between the two events I had some down time that I used to catch up on voicemail. One of the messages was from Susan Berfield, an associate editor at Business Week magazine.

Ms. Berfield wanted to talk with me because she was doing a story on young adults and their respective financial habits — that is, were they making positive steps forward. Now, when most reporters call to interview me for a story it is often a fairly brief conversation because they are usually on a very tight deadline; Hence the term — sound bite.

But this conversation was different because Ms. Berfield was deeply curious about the financial choices and habits of young adults in their thirties. Suffice it to say she asked some excellent questions. But the one that stood out was her question on the role of the culture. More specifically she asked, "In your opinion, what role does the culture play in shaping the financial habits and values of this demographic group?"

Approximately one hour later, we wrapped up our conversation and agreed to stay in touch for future stories. Always a good sign when you are speaking to a reporter from Business Week.

So, what would you have said if you were asked that same question, "What role is the culture playing in shaping the financial habits and values of young-adults?" Whether you're a student, a teacher, a parent, a grandparent or an adult mentor, I believe this question deserves some air time — because the current financial trends suggest there are rough seas ahead for millions of young people in America and it has very little to do with their I.Q. or how much money they make in a given year.

Let me circle back to the conversation I had with Ms. Berfield to shed some light on why I am so concerned about these trends and why I believe it impacts everyone in this room.

» This year in America, young people 18 and under will spend and influence the spending of more than $1 trillion dollars. To put that in to context, the annual economic output in the U.S. a.k.a. the GDP, is $11.7 trillion.
» By the time a college student reaches their senior year, they will have on average four credit cards and approximately $3,000 of credit card debt.
» In 2005, the after-tax U.S. savings rate went negative for the first time since 1933. That means we (adults in the U.S.) are spending more than we are earning.
» And according to data just released this month from the Bureau of Labor, the after-tax personal savings rate of young adults 35 and under is now a shocking negative 16 percent.

When Ms. Berfield's Business Week article "Thirty and Broke" came out late last year, I noticed she included some additional bits of information:

» Real earnings for college graduates without advanced degrees have fallen in the last four years.
» The average credit card debt for young adults ages 25-34 is $5,200.

This dramatic increase in debt that is now "normal" for so many young adults doesn't just magically appear when they turn 18, 20 or 25. No, this debt starts much earlier in life. It starts at age 5, or 8 or 10 in the form of spending habits — spending habits that metastasize into credit card debt in their 20's and 30's.

No matter how you slice it, a person's ability to be generous is in direct proportion to their financial capacity. If we are so distracted by hyper-consumption how will we be able to respond to the needs of the world.

In a recent national study by Ameriprise Financial, Baby Boomers, adults ages 42 to 60, were asked to identify their top retirement planning needs. The number one answer? — Advice to help their children become more financially savvy. It wasn't sorting through health care options; it wasn't making sense of social security and employer pensions; it wasn't dealing with legacy and inheritance matters, no, the top answer was advice to help their children become more financially savvy. So, are you a little curious as to why it was the number one answer? The study offered the following insight: "Many Boomers, who grew up during a time of relative economic prosperity, have not led their lives with the frugality and financial prudence that characterized their parent's generation."

We are paying a big price for this stealth addiction. You can see it every day in our communities as it wreaks havoc on families, as it blinds us from seeing the needs in our communities and the greater world, as it pulls us away from sharing time and money with those who are the least fortunate among us.

No parent has ever told me it is their goal to raise a selfish, narcissistic child, but it happens. It happens because the messages of hyper-consumption are relentless. Whether you are rich or poor, hyper-consumption will come calling. And unless we have a process and a system to counter the onslaught of consumer messages the future does not look pretty.

Best-selling author Dr. David Walsh, one of the nation's pre-eminent child psychologists and president of the National Institute on Media and the Family says, "The people who tell the stories define the culture." When it comes to shaping financial habits and values in the 21st century, who do you think is defining the culture?

Jesus knew the value of telling stories and He really understood why it was so important to preach about money and material distractions. And to think, that was well before MTV and shows like Cribs, Pimp My Ride and Super Sweet Sixteen.

Today's Gospel illustrates just how challenging this issue can be. When Jesus said "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God," it certainly begs the question "Am I rich?" But it also offers the convenient rationalization "I'm not rich." Two billion people live on less than $1 per day. If you have spare change in a dish at home you are wealthier than 75 percent of the world's population.

Another of my favorite passages in the New Testament is the Parable of the Sower because it speaks directly to the issue at hand. Now I know today's Gospel is from the book of Mark, so allow me some theological latitude as I jump to Luke's version of the Parable of the Sower. Luke's language fits a bit better with the points I want to make this morning. From Luke 8:5:

'A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.' As he said this, he called out, 'Let anyone with ears to hear listen!'

'Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.

So, if Jesus were here today, what might His reaction be to our insatiable consumer appetites that so define who we are? What might His reaction be to the myriad of mediums we have for purchasing more stuff? If Jesus were here today, what grade would he give the church for responding to the tidal wave of consumption that now overwhelms His birthday every December?

Last summer Terry Parsons, who is head of Stewardship for the Episcopal Church USA and I were interviewed by Kerry Miller of Minnesota Public Radio. The topic "Should the Church Play a Role in Talking and Teaching about Money?" Suffice it to say Kerry Miller really pressed us to defend why we thought the church should be convening conversations about money and materialism.

In the interview I recalled that immediately after the 2004 presidential election Zogby International polled Americans from coast to coast and asked them to name the number one moral/values crisis facing our country. Contrary to popular belief Americans said the number one moral/values crisis of the day was greed and materialism.

Bottom line, if we (and that includes the church) aren't intentional about teaching and linking financial habits and values as part of our faith journey, the culture of greed and materialism will fill the void. And it won't ask for your permission.

Our culture is working overtime to addict young people to spending and the social, economic and spiritual implications are almost beyond comprehension because we have never been here before. That is, no generation has ever experienced the tsunami of marketing and advertising messages like young people in America.

If our balance sheets are filled with debt at such an early age, where will the resources come from to respond to those who are the least fortunate among us — be it here in Indianapolis or in places like sub-Saharan Africa where 125,000 children die each month from malaria because they don't have a $5 mosquito bed-net.

I realize the information I am sharing today is a lot to process in a short period of time and might even border on depressing. But before you think there is no hope I want to circle back to what Jesus said in the Parable of the Sower.

"…some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among the thorns and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundred fold…"

Think of all the places we hear messages to pursue something other than what God is calling us to do.
Muhammed Yunus, the recent recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize who is from Bangladesh, made his first micro loan in 1976; $27 to 43 villagers near the university where he was teaching to help them start their own business. He said he asked himself, "If you can make so many people happy with such a small amount of money shouldn't you do more of it." By the way — all the villagers repaid him in full.

"But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart and bear fruit with patient endurance."

Patient endurance. Step by step. Little by little we make our way in the world pursuing what God is truly calling us to do, and be. And the research supports us on this one. That is, people who focus less on spending and more on saving and sharing not only are happier, but also healthier.

I was traveling down in North Carolina a few years ago and heard a preacher share a very memorable phrase in his sermon. He said, "Hope, without a plan, is denial." The point he was trying to make is that it's fine to hope a particular situation like hyper-consumption will improve; but it doesn't mean much unless there is some kind of action plan attached to the statement. We can hope that our children don't become addicted to spending, but absent an intentional plan to counter the messages of hyper-consumption the current trends of "it's all about me" which often lead to debt and diminished sharing are not likely to change.

This will require new ideas and new conversations both on the micro and macro level. That is, a different focus both in our homes and here at the Cathedral. Mother Teresa has a great quote: "do not wait for the leaders, do it alone, person-to-person."

I believe that people of all ages can develop and maintain healthy financial habits. But given what we are up against it will take a very intentional approach on our part to help everyone, especially young people, to stay the course. If we don't take it upon ourselves to teach them about gratitude and patience and sacrificing for things we believe in then who will? How will they know the joy of giving and the value of saving and investing if we don't challenge them at a young age to share generously, save wisely and spend appropriately?

Last fall I gave a presentation at a large financial services firm. After I finished speaking, I was chatting with a few people and one of them shared the following story about his son. "Earlier in the year my wife and I decided to implement the Share-Save-Spend (SSS) allowance with our eight-year-old son Jason after reading your book. Last August, after Hurricane Katrina, Jason learned about an appeal at our church to help the people on the Gulf Coast. At that point, I think he had around $42 dollars in his SSS bank of which $10 was earmarked for sharing. The next week Jason asked us if it was okay to give his share money to the Katrina Fund at church. Of course we agreed. On the way home from church we asked him about the experience. Jason, who is a boy of few words, said it made him feel really good. When we got home, Jason told us to come to his room because he wanted to show us something. (And this is where the father was overcome with emotion in telling me the story). What Jason wanted to show us is that all three of his banks — Share, Save, and Spend — were empty. So we asked him, 'why did you give all your money to the Katrina fund' and Jason said, "Because I have so much and they lost everything."

"But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart and bear fruit with patient endurance." Amen.