10 Significant Trends of Last Decade

Qideas.org is tracking the Ten Most Significant Trends of the past decade.  Interesting stuff, for example:

At the Q gathering in 2010, urbanologist Richard Florida observed that young adults meeting one another no longer ask, “What do you do?” They ask, “Where do you live?” More and more people will change careers in order to stay in a place—connected to family, friends, and local culture—than will change place to stay in a career. The 20th-century American dream was to move out and move up; the 21st-century dream seems to be to put down deeper roots. This quest for local, embodied, physical presence may well be driven by the omnipresence of the virtual and a dawning awareness of the thinness of disembodied life.

Go read for yourself.

Today’s Emerging Adults 1

Scot McKnight at Jesus Creed is exploring Christian Smith’s new book: Souls in Transition: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of Emerging Adults. Today the question is: What is the cultural world of the emerging adult?  We’re talking about 46 million emerging adults… so generalizations need careful backing of evidence and all kinds of nuance.

What do you think of this listing of characteristics of emerging adults?

Transitions aplenty

Standing on one’s own

So much to figure out

Not enough money

Optimism for personal future

Smarting from hard lessons learned

No regrets

A Plea for a Fuller Gospel Vision

Let me preface the following post by stating how important I feel it is for Christians to be open-minded and unafraid to generously engage and learn from people of differing viewpoints.  I am a better person and a stronger, more committed follower and teacher of Biblical Christianity precisely because I allow my convictions to be challenged and sharpened by differing views.  Now, what can this Green Economy organization contribute to our understanding of the mission of the local and global church?

The Wide-Eyed Vision of BALLE

My friend works for The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) which is “the world’s fastest growing network of sustainable businesses committed to building local economies and transforming the community economic development field.”  What I have always loved and respected about my friend is her passion, convictions and commitment toward the causes she holds dear.  She exudes life and determination and inspires others to get off their buns and into the game, making something of themselves and a difference in the world.  A good bumper sticker for her might be something like: “Life’s short. Go Build a Better World.”

I’m not in the least surprised she found herself part of such an innovative, visionary, locally-driven, global-thinking, world-changing, life-improving organization.  BALLE seems to fit like a glove.  Here’s a taste of what BALLE is all about.  Please pay attention to the language describing their vision — especially words in bold:

BALLE builds Local Living Economies in North America that foster vibrant communities, a healthy natural environment, and prosperity for all.

BALLE believes in the power of local businesses to transform communities for the better by working cooperatively toward a shared vision. We imagine cities and towns of every size and political stripe engaged in shared learning to build community assets like sustainable agriculture, green building,renewable energy, community capital, zero-waste manufacturing and independent retail – what we call the building blocks of Living Economies. We envision a time when local economies not only generate community wealth, but also are catalysts for civic action, social diversity and ecological health — for sustainable communities.

-Quoted from http://www.livingeconomies.org

I totally get it.  There is something intoxicating and thrilling about being part of a grassroots movement of like-minded people united by a common vision of building a better world through the creation of vibrant local communities who thrive and prosper in sustainable and renewable ways. How can such a vision not light a fire in your bones and move you to action?  I have quoted a bit of the vision and principles of BALLE above because I believe it’s words should strike a chord with all of us — especially followers of Jesus who make up the worldwide church.  

SINKING (4): Patching Leak #2 – Soundbite Christianity

Is the evangelical boat sinking in America?  Today I want to identify a second major leak threatening to sink the church at large – not only the evangelical church: Soundbite Christianity.

One of the greatest concerns I have for the emerging generation is the growing pervasiveness of “mircro-communication” in their lives.  I recently saw a 15 year old girl featured on “Nightline” who sends 30,000 text messages on her phone each month.  Do the math: that’s 1,000 per day, 62 per waking hour, or one message each minute with no breaks.  This issue raises many other concerns about healthy communication, relational boundaries, tendinitus in the thumbs(!), and so on, but I see a larger cultural pattern at work that really seems to threaten the spiritual health of Christians.  Our understanding of the world, of God, one another, culture, truth, spirituality and faith are all being formed shaped by a society of short soundbites.  ”Just give me the headline, the facts, the bottom line, the application, the gist of it.  Don’t bother me with all the details, the full explanation, the whole story.  I don’t have time for all that.  I’m busy.  I’ll just secure the info I want or need when I want it or need it.”  

A BRIEF HISTORY OF COMMUNICATION

Here’s a quick history of interpersonal communication in the past century: Meet John and Jane.  John loves Jane.  John travels by horse and buggy two days to spend the weekend with Jane.  The two spend hours exchanging life stories and getting to know each other deeply.  John returns home.  Jane takes an hour to write a love letter to John expressing her gratitude for a great weekend together.  John calls Jane on the telephone and the two exchange laughs and loving words for 30 minutes.  It is good to hear each other’s voice; but they miss each other’s face and touch.  Jane text messages John on her new cell phone: “I luv U.”  John texts back: “Diddo.”  Jane is fascinated with John so she decides to read his personal blog weekly.  John is equally as fascinated with Jane, but would rather get a shorter summary of her thoughts and so she follows his Twitter.  Now he can eaves drop on what Jane is thinking, doing or feeling (in 200 words or less) whenever he wants – without even communicating directly with her.  She does the same.  

How does this communication trend relate to the church in America?  For starters:

- The early church met in homes and share their lives, possession, worries and a meal; today if we’re lucky we might share a 25 minute sermon (but not a minute more!).

- The life of Christian discipleship and spiritual formation used to be embraced as a lifelong process; now it’s viewed as a weekend long seminar.

- We want spiritual insight and a deep understanding of God’s Word; but we want it distilled into powerpoint bullet points.  

- We want to be like Jesus but we don’t follow his example of regularly withdrawing to lonely places for solitude, prayer and fellowship with God.  

I am concerned for a generation of young Christians who never sit still, can’t bear a moment’s silence, constantly avoid face-to-face conversations, pick-and-choose what to listen to when, constantly send messages but have largely forgotten how to listen.  At the root of the problem is the foundational fact that God has chosen to reveal himself most powerfully through a very long story (Bible) and in the face-to-face encounter with a human being (Jesus).  And we have lost the patience and appreciation for a good story; and have no time for a good conversation with a friend over coffee.

The future health of the evangelical church depends on the health of the individuals who make up the church.  We must recapture the ability to sit still under the instruction of the Lord, to plant ourselves like a tree by His streams of living water so we can, over the long haul, sink down deep roots and thereby grow healthy, fruit-bearing branches for God.  If we refuse to be immerse ourselves in the whole story of God and insist on living off our momentary sips — or soundbites — of Christian inspiration, we will become like the chaff that the winds of our fast-paced, spiritually-deprived culture blows away. 

“Blessed is the man [whose] delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.  Whatever he does prospers.  Not so the wicked!  They are like chaff that the wind blows away” (Psalm 1).

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.  He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit” (Jer 17:7-8).

Discussion Questions: Do we view our life as swept up in the larger story of God?  Or, do we merely apply nuggets of Christian truth (i.e., soundbites) to our life?  As we minister, do we dispense Christian soundbites or invite others into God’s Story?  How do we avoid the messy, face-to-face relationships the church should be about?  How well do we embrace God’s invitation to “Be still and know I am God?”  How often do we “withdraw to lonely places” like Jesus to pray and fellowship with God?  How can we model a Christian spirituality that is planted by the stream for our teenagers bombarded by a society of soundbites?