Are We Amputating Parts of His Body?

Our church has a ministry especially for the college aged people and other young adults (up to about age 30).  On the surface, I think this sounds like a great idea.  Young people can connect with others their age as they figure how to live out their life of faith in the context of today’s world.  Great, so far.

 I heard our Senior Pastor say the other day that when he retires in 15 to 20 years, he wants to hand off the leadership of the chuch to this new emerging generation.  Yep, that makes sense.  About the time the current leadership is ready to retire, the younger generation will be taking over the reins of ministry.

So far, so good.  But remember, I’m Ms. Crankypants so of course I have a problem with all of this.  Here it comes.   😉

The Bible is quite clear that one of the roles for older women in the church — women who’ve been married for awhile, successfully raised kids, and actually lived to tell about it(!) — are supposed to serve as mentors for the younger women.  But if the younger women who are just starting their homes and families are all segregated off with their age-mates in their own church service, their own small groups, and their own ministry outreaches, at what point do the generations come in meaningful contact with each other?

I remember being a young mom and wishing there were older women in the church who I could rub shoulders with as I attempted to live out my faith in meaningful spiritual and practical ways.  But the older women either weren’t there, or were all too busy with their careers, retirement plans, etc., to take time to walk alongside a fledgling mom like me and show me the ropes.  I remember telling myself that when I found myself in the position of being one of the “older women”, I was going to make sure I was available to the next generation.  Providing I didn’t grow up to be a complete spiritual imbecile, I wanted to be that “Titus Woman” for others coming behind me.

Well, now I’m getting close to that next stage of life.  One child is grown … two others are quickly following.  I’ve been married for nearly 30 years.  I’ve almost hit half a century of plodding through this earthly life.  Seems like it’s time to start looking around for opportunities to give into the lives of younger women.

 But guess what?  They’re no place to be found!  They’re all hanging out with each other in church prescribed groups with others their age.  It’s almost like they’re a small church within the larger church … but without any sort of meaningful contact with the older generations.  It breaks my heart to see the walls … the official church programmed walls … that have been erected between the upcoming saints and the seasoned ones with wisdom and experience to share.

I can understand making connections with other people in your age group (we all need friends who can relate to our stage of life), but the Church (the Body of Christ) is made up of ALL ages and stages … young, old, healthy, sick, happy, broken-hearted, new moms, old moms, teens, elderly.  Doesn’t it say in the Bible that the various parts of the Body aren’t suppose to say that they don’t need each other?   The truth is, we all need each other deeply.  Desperately.  Iron sharpening iron, and all that.

Going back to that comment my pastor made about handing off the leadership to the younger generation someday, I find myself wondering just how prepared the next generation is going to be for that leadership role when they’ve been segregated away from the wisdom of their elders throughout all of their formative years (from those early preschool Sunday School classes to the college and post-college age groups)?

 It seems to me that interaction with our age-mates is important … but should be secondary in the life of the Church.  Otherwise we just end up with a bunch of feet teaching each other how to be a foot … rather than an entire body working together in unison.

 For example, at our church, the younger generation has an entire church service that’s mainly just for them.  It’s in the evening and is advertised as a way for the participants to get to sleep in on Sunday mornings.  (Ugh.!!!  Oh, sorry … had a cranky moment, there.)   Anyway, my children and I go to the evening service but not so we can sleep in.  We go to church at night so it frees us up to serve during the two Sunday morning worship services.  Whether teaching Sunday School or ushering or helping with hospitality or working at an information table, we have the chance to serve the entire Body … plus we can still attend a worship service each week.  It breaks my heart to think that all the young people in that evening service are being encouraged to sleep in, rather than to plug in and be of service to the rest of their local church body.

I think the younger generation has effectively been amputated at our church from the rest of the Body.  And what happens to a limb that’s been amputated?  Unless it’s saved quickly and reattached while life still remains, it dies.

 I’m praying that somehow the living connections between the generations will reestablish themselves before it’s too late.  I’d hate to see gangrene or rigor mortis set in.