My first grandbaby was born recently. She is a beauty. She looks so much like her mom did at that age I sometimes get a sense of having stepped through a time portal. It is like looking at my own newborn through the seasoned perspective of many years of experience, and I wonder if my mother felt the same way when my little girl was born.
My daughter calls or texts often with questions and concerns for her little one, and I feel honored to be given the opportunity to offer words of wisdom that help alleviate her fears. But what if she did not call? What if she viewed my advice as outdated and no longer relevant? Instead of having the advantage of my experience that saves time and worry, she would make slow progress through the lessons of life with a newborn.
From my daughter I have learned new methods and inventions that have emerged since my children were born. Medical knowledge has fine-tuned some newborn baby care instructions, and progress has added some real conveniences I did not have. What if I refused all new ideas and declared there was nothing wrong with the way we did things over twenty years ago? I could just make things harder on myself, or I could actually endanger my grandchild’s life with my ignorance. After all, when I was a child there were no seat belts or car seats. Think on that for a moment.
I am using this simple illustration as a basis for a much broader subject that disturbs the peace of my heart. In recent years I have observed the gap between generations beginning to widen to an alarming degree. It seems many young people do not understand or acknowledge the value of experience and stability of tradition that older generations provide. Many people of older generations wrongly label young people as rebellious for wanting to change how it has “always been done” and press forward in progress. Both sides are losing wherever these prejudices are permitted.
The message I want to present here translates into all types of situations where older and younger generations coexist. To further articulate my observation, however, I am going to use the worship music of the local church. Anyone who knows me knows that is where I have the most experience and wherein lies my greatest passion.
It is Sunday morning. At the neighborhood church a congregation made up of all generations gathers for worship. Everyone is smiling and enjoying the fellowship of friends and family members. The service begins with prayer in which everyone participates. Then the music begins.
The first selection is contemporary worship music, and the younger generations smile and sing with expectation of the glory of God’s presence. The older generations do not smile, and they do not sing. They appear to be doubting the spiritual value of such progressive music and dismissing those who enjoy it as shallow youths who do not grasp what it means to stand on God’s promises through the trials of life.
The next music selection is from the hymn book, and the tide of participation flows in the opposite direction. The older generations are smiling again, singing with conviction the songs of eternal promises they have known from their youth. The younger generations do not sing, and they do not smile. They appear to be doubting the spiritual value of such old-fashioned music and dismissing those who enjoy it as irrelevant old people who do not grasp what it means to really worship until the presence of God pushes away today’s darkness.
I am a bridge to connect generations.
I applaud progress that does not sacrifice the integrity of a message, the core values of a principal, or the physical, spiritual, and emotional well being of life. I celebrate futuristic innovation and creativity and find it exhilarating! I also hold sacred the traditions of faith, family, and my beloved country. I understand that without the foundation laid by our ancestors in every area of life, there would be nothing on which to build a future. Those who blazed the trails of the past with prayer and sacrifice brought us securely to the present and deserve to be honored. Their wealth of knowledge and wisdom should be respected and utilized.
There is not one person of the past, present, or future who should be disregarded.
Each individual is a unique piece of a grand design, and we are all made better, stronger, and more effective when we join hands and move forward together.
Real strength and success will only occur when we are able to close the widening gap between generations and place the hand of past experience into the hand of future progress.
Are you a bridge?
