BE THE CHANGE

I've read a number of blogs about how sorry people are about the Church in America and how they have lost "young people".
Some are more concerned with their programs and how to attract more people, or concerned about the building project they are hoping to construct, and they have forgotten to relate to the population of our society that have become intensely involved and care about social justice issues .

The statistics are widely reported  of how many young people have abandoned the Church. Some are saying they still love and follow Jesus, and others are walking away from their faith all together. 

A few of the blogs were so apologetic about how the church has not reached out and done more to keep and engage the 20 and 30 somethings.

I must apologize for my generation .
Somehow we have failed in instructing, leading by example of the importance of our own individual relationship with Jesus.  This is first and foremost in any and all our relationships. We must not have stressed the importance of God's Word and the  extreme importance of spending time getting God's perspective on any issue in life.  And quite possibly, we too, have left our own growth up to the Church and aren't invested in the Word either.

As an older, more mature follower of Christ, I have been challenged profusely by Francis Chan in Crazy Love, wanting to desperately be more involved  in social issues because of Shane Claiborne's, Irresistable Revolution, and inspired by Jen Hatmaker in 7 to watch my spending and getting rid of the excesses of my life.

I have often wondered why the LORD had me live in the United States, being blessed with incredible resources, having way more than I could ever need, when I could have been born in sub Saharan Africa, and gotten AIDS from a philandering husband. I don't understand why I was blessed so. What I do know is that I can't waste the life God has given me. I can't take His blessings for granted. I need to be my own personal agent for change. If i want to see changes occur, I must start the change in myself.

I can't expect others to change if I am not willing to give up things myself. I must be willing to sacrifice so that others might have a better life. Jesus requires me to to be a lover of people, to think of others higher than i would ever think of myself. 

Maybe its because I am older. maybe its because I was part of the "Jesus Freak" generation, but I believe we are each responsible for our own growth. I can't expect to know more of God and what He desires for my life if I don't spend anytime with Him. It is easy to blame my generation for many numerous wrongs, but I also advocate that we aren't totally to blame for the younger people leaving the Church.

Too many complain and place blame on others; this church isn't meeting my needs, I'm gonna try another one. This church doesn't reach out to help the poor in our community, doesn't care about issues globally.
So instead of trying to be the change that makes the difference, we leave. We look for another church, and then when we don't find one, we just quit going. And we say its the Church's fault  

What I want to know is how are today's younger generation going to help change this paradigm?
 

Why are you giving up so easily?  Why don't you help us change, to see where we are missing the mark?  Why can't you persevere? Do you think we always have loved the Church, have felt supported? I realize that many of you think we are a very materialistic generation. That bothers me too. But why can't you help us be the change?
Over and over again, Jesus challenges us to take care of each other; we are to look out for the orphans and the widows, we are to take care of the poor, fight for justice for the disenfranchised and love one another.
I admit, so often , I don't.
I don't like that about myself. I am trying to change. I want to do something instead of just hoping someone else will. I start by making little changes. I'm pretty sure that's how it all begins; with little steps.  
We need to be proactive. We need to begin with ourselves and then share with someone-at least one person, what we are trying to do.

We desperately need to take care and love each other. It isn't an option, its a command that Jesus gave us:

"Love one another as I have loved you".

O Lord, teach us, help us, to be the lovers of people that you have envisioned us to be.   

Change

I have always been known as a flexible person.
Not flexible as in a gymnast-this older body is not what one would call flexible and adapting to new positions of body contortion.

Flexible in the sense that I can adapt to change. I don't know how many managers I had during my nursing career; all I know is that there were plenty of them. I would miss some of them who were phenomenal, and breathe sighs of relief from those who seemed to be marginal. The change of a boss never affected my job-how I performed my everyday tasks.

I would miss dear friends who would move away, or the ones who never lived close.  I would decide that distance would not affect our friendship.
When my own kids left to go to college, I would have an ache in my heart that I no longer was needed as an everyday mom and miss their physical presence in our home, but I learned to adjust and kept going on.

Probably the most significant challenge I had in being flexible was moving to Woodleaf. I never anticipated how hard it would be. I mean, I knew I was moving to an isolated place, but what I had not expected was the deep loneliness I felt. I came here as a wife with nothing to do. I had no kids to take care of and I didn't have a job. I didn't have much of anything to do and that was extremely hard on me. Eventually, in His graciousness, God took me thru the painful period and gave me something to do in ministering to college kids.

We've had numerous changes here at Woodleaf in the 6-7 years we have been here (Scud has been here 7 next week and I have been here 6). 
In Young Life camping, people come and go. They come and we get to know them and adopt them into our community, and then they might transfer to another camp and we say good bye and our hearts hurt a bit, and then someone comes to replace them and the process starts again.
From when Scud began his job here, there is only two people that are still here and I can think of at least 24 that have come after us and since departed.
So you learn to adapt-you have to.
And I anticipate a few more changes in the next year.
I anticipate one in a month that will leave me with the biggest hole.
My friend Tiffany, who I met five years ago when I started doing Young Life College at Chico, quickly filled in and became our office summer intern when one of the employees quit suddenly. Within 3 months of leaving, she came back as our Retail Manager, a position she has filled absolutely incredibly for the past 3 1/2 years. But now, being the beautiful, fun loving, people loving person that she is, she has felt an itch for awhile now to move on, which I understand. I mean afterall, how is she going to find someone to love and cherish her here in the middle of nowhere??
Her leaving will leave a HUGE void in my life. We have done life together, I have been her mentor and she has been my confidant and the one person I absolutely trust (besides Scud) at Woodleaf.

I know this change will be wonderful for her and I truly am excited for her. I will anticipate the stories she will share with me and I know we will continue our friendship and see each other. Its just that she won't be my neighbor anymore. I can't call her to come over for dinner and a glass of wine. We won't be doing bible studies together. I won't have to or won't be able to comfort her in a break up like I have done. I will miss her beautiful face and her cute outfits, and Scud and I will have to watch the CMA's without our favorite country girl.

But she is going to a new adventure that will be challenging and exciting all at the same time. She will get to see and even live for awhile with her very best friend and her husband and hopefully will meet the man I have been praying for-for her, very soon.

Me? My life will be the same here. The excitement of the Woodleaf summer and getting to know and love the interns is on the horizon. But this time, the change will be very hard, very lonely, and yet I anticipate that God will use this in my life to reveal even more treasures of Himself to me.
Flexibility is not what it used to be. Maybe I am "old" because old people don't adapt as easily. Or maybe I will just miss the dear dear gift that God blessed my life with abundantly these past 5 years.

Here's to you Tiffany Lynn!! May God bless you as you transition from here to there.