25 year old Xavier sits at his job all day, bored. He watches his dreams go by in a job that does not fulfill his longing for something with meaning. Sure he makes a decent amount of money, lives in a well-to-do neighborhood, and drives a nice car, but Xavier is empty. One day Xavier decides to leave, to follow his dreams, to take a pay cut. He doesn’t know where he is going or how he is going to make money but he does know that he is now on the right track…
14 year old Candice does not like school. Well, it’s not that she doesn’t like school, it’s just that she just can’t see the point of it. Most of the subjects won’t help to fulfill her dreams of being a photographer. So she just sits in class waiting for the time to pass, and dreaming about taking pictures…
One thing that can be said about Generation Y and Generation Z after them, is that unless what they are involved in is meaningful, they typically will find something new to do. Older generations often think that Generations Y & Z just can’t commit to anything and that they are lazy, but there is one thing that drives these two generations: meaning. If there is nothing of substance, if it does not get them closer to their dreams or aspirations, if it’s just to make money, it is not enough to sustain them. Meaningful living, following dreams, taking risks is what drives these generations.
When we look at preaching, and we critique what we do in the pulpit, we often fall short of proclaiming a meaningful Gospel. Some of our churches place most of their meaning in the liturgy, while others in moralism, but very few utilize the pulpit in a way that cultivates meaning in the lives of the hearers. Some people respond to preaching out of obligation to do a good thing, and so they get involved in church, get involved because that is all they know to do. But, Generations Y & Z will not get involved on their own free will, if the gospel message that we preach is not meaningfully relevant to their lives, if it does not enhance their dreams and aspirations.
The Gospel message must tell these generations that the cross of Christ frees them from Satan’s grips and propels them into the arms of a God who gave them dreams to fulfill. It must tell them that sin is what stifles their creativity, but Christ gives new life and great visions. They must know that sin makes them think they have nothing to offer, but Christ reminds them of the Images of God placed in them. Having morals and doctrine is needed, but our Gospel must compel these generations that their dreams, visions, and goals must encounter the living God to find true meaning.
Our Gospel must say that the lynching of Jesus, is the exact reason why your photography will help to eradicate senseless wars, that your coffee shop will help to eradicate hunger in the world, that your music will be the new protest songs, that your clothing business will offer living wages, that your law practice will look out for the least and the lost, that your clinic give great healing to all. Our preaching needs meaning. As Dr. Maria Dixon states:
“Our churches are dying because we have become crypt keepers. We preach messages of dead doctrines while extolling traditions that cannot be made relevant to our current context. We keep liturgies. We keep rituals. We keep archives. Yet we produce no new growth. We preserve the church—just like a grave preserves the memory of the dead. We willfully place God and the Gospel back in the tomb with our inability to live in the light of God’s love or testify to God’s grace.”
Preaching for the new generations must speak to the power of meaningful living. For these generations will not get involved and give of themselves inside the church unless they can see that the Gospel has meaning. I know some of us think they should just get involved because it is the church, but I praise God for their discernment, because they are showing us that we have become too complacent, and that we may not have anything to offer.
If this offends prove us wrong.