My Generation

As I wrote yesterday, we began a new series at our church called Drift. I was looking forward to this series as it has been influenced by the book unChristian. I had seen an interview with the authors a couple months ago and I was so intrigued. I am telling you, I left Sunday recharged, challenged and heart broken. Pete gave some statistics that really stuck with me. I did a little more digging and found the following in the book:

91% think the church is anti-homosexual
87 % think the church is judgmental
85% think the church is hypocritical
78% think church is old fashioned
75% think the church is too involved in politics
72% think the church is out of touch with reality
70 % think church is insensitive to others
68% think church is boring
61% think the church is confusing.

At one point in the service Pete asked us to raise our hands if we fell into that age range. I must admit that my heart sunk as I raised my hand. These are me peers that are feeling that way about church.

What happened to make church a negative word? I can’t tell you how many times I choked back tears as it became more and more apparent that church as become a rarity in the lives of this generation. This is the generation that will lead our country one day. This is the generation that my children will be looking to for guidance. This is the generation that is lost.

It makes me realize that every word I say, every action I display matters. Striking up simple conversations with those around me…or even with the grocery store clerk matter. Sometimes I just get focused inward. I think about my boys, or my friends or how I will serve at church. I am grateful for that but I often forget to look outwards. I miss the opportunity to be Christ to someone. My prayer is that God will mold my heart to be more like His, that, as painful as it might be, He would remind me of the lost people who are just looking for someone to tell them about Him.

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