I’m sitting along the side of the road in a puddle of rusty antifreeze that has just exploded through a blown radiator hose under the hood of the 15 year old POS i’m driving. Not real happy at the moment, but not really angry either. A tow-truck is on the way. So, nothing to do but listen to crappy pop songs on the radio (my AM doesn’t work in this car—much to my chagrin), or write a blog entry on the computer that i just happened to grab on my way out the door this morning. I don’t usually bring it, but i’m glad i did today.

Waiting for a tow truck is a ritual i’ve gotten used to in the last few years. If a business could be my best friend, AAA would be it.

*****

I’m home–after a 30 minute ride with a tow-truck driver who was mad at the world and not afraid to show it. Thankfully he was using words and not his truck to let people know what he thought of them. It made me realize that God has given me a tremendous gift in the ability to roll with situations and not let them make me angry. When i think about it, i like my personality–most of the time.

I’m sitting along the side of the road in a puddle of rusty antifreeze that has just exploded through a blown radiator hose under the hood of the 15 year old POS i’m driving. Not real happy at the moment, but not really angry either. A tow-truck is on the way. So, nothing to do but listen to crappy pop songs on the radio (my AM doesn’t work in this car—much to my chagrin), or write a blog entry on the computer that i just happened to grab on my way out the door this morning. I don’t usually bring it, but i’m glad i did today.

Waiting for a tow truck is a ritual i’ve gotten used to in the last few years. If a business could be my best friend, AAA would be it.

*****

I’m home–after a 30 minute ride with a tow-truck driver who was mad at the world and not afraid to show it. Thankfully he was using words and not his truck to let people know what he thought of them. It made me realize that God has given me a tremendous gift in the ability to roll with situations and not let them make me angry. When i think about it, i like my personality–most of the time.

I met last night with the Quest ‘research committee.’ The short story is that Terry (one of the group’s “founders”) met with the pastor of ONC to determine where Quest will be heading in the future. Pastor Brent gave us a research/homework assignment–to basically find out what went wrong the first time.

So we met last night and discussed options for continuing the Quest service in the fall. At the start of summer we downgraded from a Sunday night worship service to an in-home Bible study. The discussion now is, “what does our generation (or more specifically, the current group we’re trying to reach) need?”

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately, and i’ve come to the conclusion that we (people my age, the “next generation” etc…) need to stop looking to others to meet our needs spiritually. (Just to clarify: This whole discussion is based on the premise that there is a significant segment of our society, or our “generation”[defined not in age but in attitude, i.e. "young at heart"] that is not satisfied with church as it is now, and is looking for a church it can embrace and ‘own.”) We need to lose the mentality that the modern church is going to provide a “service” or a pastor or create the church that we want to be a part of. We need to be the church that we want to own.

I’m 26 years old. And yet, i still have the mentality that i’m a child, or a young adult. I still daydream in terms of “when i grow up….” I still live my life like i just finished high-school and i have my entire adult life ahead of me. The problem is that i’m already an adult. I just don’t want to act like one in the areas that really matter. I like the idea that i’m old enough to rent a car or buy cigars. But i’m scared of the idea that i’m old enough to be spiritually responsible for a family, or a church.

I have long felt that young people in the church (and in the world) today need to step up and take responsibility for themselves. We’re surrounded by the opposite, and we can all see how it adversely affects our society and culture. It’s hard, though, to step up and take responsibility for my own life. I shouldn’t be hunting for a church that will ‘meet my needs.’ I should be out there saying “i have a vision for my generation. If you share that vision, let’s come together in unity. Let’s be the church.”