QT 29 Oct 12, How do second generation believers avoid the pain of failure through disobedience?

Judg 6:1-10 (NIV) Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites. 2 Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds. 3 Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples invaded the country. 4 They camped on the land and ruined the crops all the way to Gaza and did not spare a living thing for Israel, neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys. 5 They came up with their livestock and their tents like swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count the men and their camels; they invaded the land to ravage it. 6 Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the Lord for help.

7 When the Israelites cried to the Lord because of Midian, 8 he sent them a prophet, who said, "This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 9 I snatched you from the power of Egypt and from the hand of all your oppressors. I drove them from before you and gave you their land. 10 I said to you, 'I am the Lord your God; do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.' But you have not listened to me."

NOTE: Because of the Israelites' evil, God once again gives them into the hands of their enemies--to the point where they cannot own homes or possession or grow their own food. It was not as if God had not warned them. There is this continual cycle between obedience and disobedience in Judges. And usually it is the next generation which has to learn the lesson anew. Why is it that second (or next) generation believers have to struggle so much? And what factors make it more difficult? In this case, Israel is hardly a "connected" country, and there are multiple "worldly" forces living within them. Consequently, they are pushed back and forth by these external forces. Only after a particularly difficult time, do they stick with God for a time, but learning to follow God the painful way is not an optimal choice. But, it is not necessarily inevitable that one has to learn the hard way every time (to quote an old Jim Croce song). I think the key is found in both Judges and its corresponding book, Hebrews. One needs to attach themselves to other GROWING believers (lesson from Hebrews) and place themselves under accountable spiritual leadership (Judges). Fellowship needs to be growing, not just gathering, where real spiritual discussions take place. Leadership needs to have the right to question a person and hold them accountable, but without abusing the authority. These are the keys to successfully walking with God in the next generation.