Dear Elim Grace,
We have often stressed the necessity, importance and privilege of younger generations being present in our midst. And they are! We are blessed with a multiplication of them. And we are blessed they are not only present but active. Serving. Leading.
This means we are and must continue making room for them. Giving them a place. And in some cases intentionally passing on our responsibility and calling to them. This doesn’t mean we who are older “move out of the way,” as much as it should mean we are finding a new place to serve or a place alongside them.
All this, though, doesn’t happen by accident. Nor can we assume it happens naturally. It happens intentionally. Purposefully. We plan for it and we work according to the plan. The reality is that I am no longer thinking or saying “one day there will be a new generation of Elim Grace and a new generation of leaders”. I am saying that day is now. I believe we are in the middle of a generational and leadership transition at Elim Grace.
If we are to grow a big people in Christ generationally, we must all maintain a heart attitude and posture of learning from and making room for a new generation. We must all cultivate the conviction that one of the best ways we can serve God’s purpose in our own generation is by helping the next generation serve God’s in their’s.
So here are three signs that I am willing to welcome, to embrace and to learn from the next generation:
- I’m discovering new joys
When they were young, my children listened to my music. Now that they are older, I listen to theirs. From me they first they received a love of music and now from them I’m receiving a new and deeper love of music. From Joshua I’m learning a greater appreciation for rock and hard rock. From Hannah (pictured on cover) for worship music. From Aidan for rap/hop-hop, indie and alternative. From Adelyn country and pop. And for all the new music they discover, they still love the music I introduced them to.
Chronological snobbery works both ways. The new can despise the old and the old can despise the new. If we are willing to listen, if we are humble enough to learn and to receive, we will discover new joys in life. One generation will enrich the other.
Are you discovering new joy through what the younger generation wants to share with you?
- I’m discovering deeper humility
I’ll tell you a secret. Up to 5 years ago I hated swimming. Not because I didn’t like the water, but because I had always been embarrassed by how I looked in swimming trunks. And then we had kids. And then we got a pool. And my kids kept asking me, “Dad, are you going to swim with us?” I had to surrender to my embarrassment to enter into the reward of a great joy: swimming and swimming with my kids. I love to swim now.
Most gifts God gives, most joys we receive, require a certain degree of humility on our part. Of embarrassment. Of vulnerability. But I know no other way than humility to enter the deepest, richest blessings God gives. It’s a narrow way every time. The younger generations have a way of keeping the older generations “on the edge of the pool” and, if we are willing, we can learn to love to swim again or for the very first time.
Are you discovering deeper humility through what you want to share with the younger generation?
- I’m discovering greater courage
The most mentally taxing part of my day, every day, is getting dressed. It stresses me out! So I try to limit my choices. But…at the same time, I want to care. So a few months ago I asked my 14 year old daughter, Adelyn, to go online and pick out some clothes for me. She did. I was surprised to see that my current fashion tastes were not too out of touch with what she thought was fashionable. But she did pick out a style of t-shirt that was out of my comfort zone. And she did pick out some off-white sneakers, a color I’ve never in my life worn on my feet. But I went ahead and got them. To have fun with my daughter and to challenge myself to try something new.
New ideas and new ways of doing things are uncomfortable. Intimidating. And often “not my style”. Yet the courage required to try new things and to accept new methods can bridge a gap in trust and friendship. It can reveal a competency in the younger generation that amazes us. It can knit our hearts in surprising ways. It can keep us “young of heart” and healthy of spirit. In fact, our courage to follow the younger generation can lead us into the new and good things God has prepared and wants for us.
Are you discovering greater courage through what the younger generation is encouraging you to try?