August 2020 — pg. 3
Age to Age
By Jeff Finley
Jeff Finley is this magazine’s
executive editor. He joined LIGHT
+ LIFE in 2011 after a dozen years
of reporting and editing for Sun-
Times Media. He is a member of
John Wesley Free Methodist Church
in Indianapolis where his wife, Jen,
serves as the lead pastor.
The generation gap is nothing new. Activist Jack Weinberg
famously said in a 1964 interview with the San Francisco
Chronicle, “Never trust anyone over 30.” His statement turned into a
rallying cry for a generation of young people, but those young people
soon became older people, and Weinberg’s age is now 80.
It’s no secret that many of us would like to stay “forever young”
(a phrase that generates 27.2 million Google results), but that simply
isn’t possible. I often think of myself as young. After all, I’m three
decades younger than the major parties’ presidential candidates. Then
a friend my age (or younger) posts a picture of his or her grandchild
on Facebook, and I am reminded I may be older than I view myself.
I was born during the 1970s, which makes me a member of
Generation X that seems more like Generation Invisible lately. A CBS
news report last year left Gen Xers out of an on-screen “Generation
Guidelines” graphic with information about the Silent Generation,
Baby Boomers, Millennials and Post-Millennials. Forbes magazine
reported that my generation “has essentially fallen off the radar
among marketers.” Perhaps being ignored will drive Generation X to
a midlife crisis, but will anyone notice?
Earlier this year, a small church in another Methodist
denomination made national news for allegedly asking “older
parishioners to leave in an effort to attract younger families,”
according to CNN, which noted the congregation’s pastor disputed
the reports. In the weeks leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic,
this story likely spread because it resonated with the experiences of
some Christians.
Like our nation’s political institutions, many congregations
have a majority of leaders and/or members who are 50 or older.
Young people may feel like these churches don’t want to hear their
viewpoints or welcome them into leadership, and the worship style
or sanctuary décor may seem outdated.
In the effort to shift demographics and attract younger people,
however, the words and actions of church leaders may communicate
that longtime members (or previously unreached older people who
live nearby) don’t matter as much.
Should we target our ministries toward younger or older people?
As revealed in this issue by Larry Petry, a Free Methodist elder in
the Genesis Conference, and Heritage Ministries colleague Melissa
Anderson, we can look to the past efforts of Bishop Walter Sellew
and other Free Methodist leaders who understood “providing for the
physical and spiritual needs of others does not require an age limit on
either end of the spectrum.”
This month’s issue offers the perspectives of people from different
age groups — including young Free Methodists Natalie Forney
and Chris Kaufman, both of whom understand the importance of
intergenerational connection. Bishop Matt Whitehead tells us we
must pass “along the generational baton of faith.” You’ll also read
about Donna Saylor, whose decades of urban ministry have benefited
countless people of different ages and backgrounds.
The COVID-19 pandemic may widen the generation gap as
health concerns prevent us from occupying the same room as people
of other generations. Technology can be helpful, but some people lack
access to the internet. Thankfully, most people can still be reached by
a phone call or a letter in the mail.
We serve the Rock of Ages “who is, and who was, and who is
to come” (Revelation 1:8). He’s been around much longer than the
oldest person reading this, and He’s more innovative than a young
tech entrepreneur. He is the One who tells us “Even to your old age
and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you
and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you” (Isaiah
46:4).+
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