SPIRITUALITY: THE CONTEST BETWEEN GENERATIONS

Andrew Murray wrote nearly a century ago, Worship is man's highest destiny because in it God is all.  Decades later this call seems to remain; the works of one's heart reaches peak performance when we are enamored with God more than anything or anyone else.  We worship Him; not in formality, but rather from impulse to declare to Him that He is our glorious God.

Generations struggle, oddly, from generation to generation.  By that I mean that each younger one tends to push against the stuckness of the older generation.  Even more ironic is that every younger group eventually becomes the older group and, uh-huh, guess who's now stuck?  The very core, who decades early pushed against the tradition which stifled development of the church, becomes the very thing these once opposed.

Nothing has changed and nothing is new.  If you are of the older generation, beware of your standing in the way of Holy Spirit movement.  If you are of the younger, fight to stay new day by day in the Spirit rather than succumbing to the way we've always done it.

So why is this happening?

The Spirit draws us into newness day by day.  That would include flexibility, adjustment, learning, growing, and maturing.  In other words it would be known as change.  What goes overlooked, my opinion, is that due to the Spirit one is to be newer (younger) today than yesterday...II Cor. 4:16.  In effect, every generation is to be newer every day which would make us all what?

The.  Same.  One generation.  In the Spirit!

Generational divide is due to the flesh's yearn for satisfying self; doing things in the order which we prefer.  The music I like...or don't like.  The preaching style, the decor, the outreach approach; all of these can (and do) replace the devoted, committed worship of Father.  When this goes on, neither generation is correct; old or young, because each has become more inclined to please one's taste rather than glorify the One.

Generational unity comes about when we all realize we've become guilty of the very same disease; driven by self-satisfaction.  The church has a world to reach.  Our harmony will take us into uncharted waters; whereas our stances and objections stifle.  Every younger generation carries the threat of being led away from God by the older generation's insistence that we do church the right way; meaning the way we've always done it .

Our communities have opportunity to be re-reached by those of us still in the church.  Our hunger and thirst for the righteousness of Jesus is the goal that some may have missed at one crucial point when among us.  May we make perpetual adjustments in order to help every age range become the same age range....new....every...day.