Scripture: Matthew 11: 16-19
To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
“‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance;we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.
Consider:
I think since the beginning of time, generations have baffled one another. “Those kids and their music.” “I don’t understand why Grandma can’t just use the phone, it’s so easy.” “Why are all the kids saying 6-7 all the sudden.”
Though it has been explained to me the 6-7 meme is sooooo 2025. Thank the Lord above in heaven.
From this day through to the end of time, parents will be confused by their children and children will be confused by their adults. Such is how it was and so it will always be.
But what if, instead of using it as a reason to distrust or if revile each other, we learned to appreciate those differences? The truth is, generations and the people in them are really nebulous concepts (Why is someone born in 1980 Gen X, while a person born in 1982 a Millennial? Are their lives that different?)
Aside from the loose definition of what makes up generations, it is true our viewpoint of the world and its culture is greatly shaped by the defining events of each person’s lives. My children have never known a world without internet. My growing up was shaped dramatically by 9-11. My parents lived through Vietnam. Their parents experienced the Great Depression and World War II. We can’t ignore how those life changing moments shape the way each generation experiences the world.
If we are shaped more by what happens to us than any other factor, our core remains the same throughout it. Our shared humanity is the same no matter if we grew up with an Ipad in our hand or remember when the first radio came out.
Let’s maybe offer each some compassion and lead with curiosity and see what happens next.
Respond:
Find someone in a dramatically different generation than you. Find out from them the what they consider to be the defining events of their life so far? What happened in the world around them to shape their worldview? Then, consider what you could learn from those stories about how to see the world through another person’s eyes.
Pray:
God, help me to remember there is more that unites us than divides us. We are, at the core, all beloved children of God who are shaped by our life and the events of the world around us. Help us to lead with compassion and curiosity instead of blame and fear. Amen.
