Millennial and Gen Z
Thank you for opening our eyes to some serious needs to change. I know that may not be what you were expecting to hear. I know your generation has taken a beating in the media (and even in church). I am more than familiar with the Millennial stereotype. But the reality is, your generation has pointed out some things that past generations really need to hear. So I begin by offering my sincere thanks.
We really are not as different as you may think. We both want to spend eternity in heaven. We both believe in God and want to follow His commands. We both believe in Jesus Christ and want to serve Him.
Open hearts and minds willing to serve God, Glorify Him.
We both have grown up under the shadow of previous generations. In fact, I am convinced if you were to sit at our kitchen table or maybe spend some time with me on a weekend seminar or in my garden you would realize I and my generation are not the “bad guys.” We really have a lot in common.
I appreciate your zeal and your desire to serve. I can remember sitting in worship assemblies week after week and thinking to myself—“Wait, shouldn’t we be getting together to actually do this stuff we are talking about? Shouldn’t we be serving in soup lines, clothing the poor, helping those in need, taking His Word to the lost?” Instead, for far too many decades we sat in air-conditioned buildings and we checked off a worship list and believed we were doing enough. As a result we stopped influencing our communities—and instead the communities started influencing us.
So thank you for encouraging us to get out of our buildings and doing personal evangelism work. Thank you for encouraging us to stop building these multi-million dollar buildings, but instead use some of that money to reach out into our communities. Thank you for reminding us that traditions are just that—traditions, and not doctrine. Be patient with those who are older as we learn to get out of our comfort zone.
You are a generation that questions things, and I appreciate that. I believe if you ask questions then your faith can be much stronger than just accepting what previous generations have done. But be careful not to allow your questioning spirit to drive a wedge between you and past generations. Use that same spirit to prove to others that Christianity is real. Show those who are questioning the evidence of why we believe what we believe.
I grew up constantly hearing about the “Greatest Generation” and how awesome they were—but deep down I always questioned that. I wondered why if they were the greatest generation it was on their watch that church growth stopped and began to decline. It was on their watch that wives left the home and never came back. It was on their watch that home Bible devotionals became almost extinct. It was on their watch that love and affection were rarely shown between fathers and their children. Simply put, I grew up with this troubling belief that the “Greatest generation” was not really the greatest.
This is where you come in. It is my sincere hope and prayer that you will be. It is my dream that your generation will bring back:
- Personal evangelism
- Church growth—both spiritual and physical
- Service to the community
- Home devotionals
- Wholesome marriages that reflect Christ and the church, and more
So I challenge you. Become the greatest generation. Not from the world’s perspective, but God’s. Understand that in order to do this you will need to continue to remain faithful to His doctrines and His Truths. You will have to accept and teach others there is such thing as absolute truth. You will have to share with the lost their sinful condition.
But I believe you can do it. I believe you can be a light to the world. I believe you can use your talents and make an incredible impact. And given our technological age, your generation may be the one that is able to effectively put God’s Word into the hands of every single soul on the planet!
Are you up to the challenge? Are you ready to be great? I stand ready to roll up my sleeves and serve with you. We are not on separate teams. We have a common goal. Let’s get busy together—for Him!