Spiritual Gifts

Is there a difference between a spiritual gift and a talent? Is it important to recognize the difference? Will it help me discover my own spiritual gifts if I can distinguish between the two?

The answer to all three questions is yes. And recognizing the differences between talents and spiritual gifts can be one of the keys to finding those spiritual gifts God has given to you.

The Young Professional Class will begin a six-week study beginning Sunday on Spiritual Gifts. We will take a look at the gifts God has blessed us with and how to use these gifts to minister to the Central Church and to reach out to those outside of Christ.

Happy Anniversay Mom-Dad

On Sunday, November 6, my mom and dad celebrated their 45thwedding anniversary. I appreciate the love and support that they have displayed for each other over the past 45 years.

Speaking on behalf of my brothers, it has been a blessing to know that mom and dad were husband and wife for life. We never had to worry when we were growing up about divorce or separation. We knew that mom and dad were life-long partners because of the commitment that they made back in 1960.

What a great example they have been to Debbie and I, Mike and Doreen and Steve and Jan. My brothers and I appreciate your commitment to each other, as well as being granny and granddad to your 6 grandkids. You are great examples.

We appreciate and love you very much!

A Father Answers His Children's Cries

Hear my cry, O God; Give heed to my prayer." Psalm 61:1

The Father desires to meet the needs of His children. Because He is God and because He is our creator, we must trust Him and believe that He really does know what's best for us. This means that He is able to see and hear and know every intimate detail of our lives. This also means that when we think He is not with us, we are wrong. The problem is not with God but with us. His word tells us to draw near to Him in humility and He will draw near to us. He delights more in our presence than we could ever delight in His. We must allow the Holy Spirit to remind us of every time in our past when we believed God was not with us and then show us how He was really there all the time. He just wasn't doing things the way we thought He should! We need to find out what God desires for us (which is our best) and then cry out to Him! "...You do not have because you do not ask." (James 4:2)

Will Our Children Have Faith?

Back among the living after a week with the flu. Appreciated the prayers. My advice to everyone this winter, GET A FLU SHOT!

John Westerhof (Will Our Children Have Faith) has written a great deal about stages of faith development in children. Using very broad strokes, he has discerned four distinct stages.

The first, he calls experiential faith. That is faith gained from experience; interaction with other people of faith. Paul writes about his young companion Timothy, that his faith was nurtured by his mother, Eunice, and his grandmother, Lois. Infants being raised in Christian homes, have something of a relationship with God, in many ways, because it’s all they’ve ever known.A lifestyle of faith is all they have ever experienced, and the only people they have ever known as people of faith. The primary reason people in this stage believe what they believe is because it’s all they’ve ever believed.

The second stage is affiliative faith – growing through involvement in a faith community. It is sharing in the worship, ministry, decision-making, caring life of the faith community. Paul first encountered Timothy when he visited Lystra, where Timothy was highly regarded as a member of the community. Children whose parents include them in church-related activities have something of a relationship with God, in many ways, because all the people around them, all the people to whom they are connected have a relationship with God. The primary reason people in this stage believe what they believe is because they belong to a group of people who believe the same things.

The third stage of faith is inquisitive – a questioning phase usually occurs sometime early in adolescence for children raised in Christian homes. Paul took Timothy on one of his missionary journeys. Participating in Paul’s mission, asking questions and testing his gifts, Timothy’s faith was challenged and strengthened. This is the stage most Christian parents fear. In fact, some churches and families discourage this stage altogether. However, if this stage is not fully experienced by a young person, his or her faith will become stunted, or worse, aborted.

The fourth stage is owned faith – a developed faith that has been tested. At this stage a person’s faith is marked by a commitment to certain beliefs, attitudes and practices. In the Bible we see Timothy sent out to resolve problems in Corinth and then to Ephesus where he is a leader in the church. Until a faith is allowed to proceed through the inquisitive stage, until a faith is questioned, it will not be mature enough to be truly owned by an individual. At this stage, a person believes what they believe because their faith has withstood the crucible moments of life.As parents, the one thing we want more than anything is for our children to possess an “owned” faith. We want our kids to love God, serve God, enjoy God, trust God, partner with God – not because of who their mom and dad are or because they’re in a church where that’s expected. We want them to do these things because they’ve made the choice to do so from the core of their own soul.

If it is important to us that our children have a fully developing faith, we should understand the four stages of faith development and that they must pass through each of the first three in order to get to the fourth.These stages are not always neatly divided, and the boundaries are often fuzzy. But it will be helpful for those of us with children to be aware of which stage our child may be in so that we can keep an eye out for what may lie ahead.

Happy Birthday Mike

Happy 32nd Birthday to my little brother Mike today (6 foot 7 inches tall) at Lawrence High School. Mike is an English teacher who has influenced many students over the years in his love for literature. He also teaches Bible Classes at Southside and is a great husband and father. He also is close to completing his PHD in English at the University of Kansas. Hope you have a great day!

What's Really Important?

Ever have a week when you feel you have let someone down. I have felt that way all week. Mainly because of the busyness in my life with work responsibilities that I don’t have time for those that matter the most to me, my family and the Central family.

But most of all, the one I leave out when I am so busy and distracted with the challenges of life is God. The One who constantly keeps me close to his side and watches over me, I just push Him aside so I can do the things I want to do, the way I want to do them. I am a pretty selfish individual.

This Sunday in our Young Professional Class we are concluding our discussion on God’s Direction for Our Lives. We are focusing on the aspect if we make a wrong turn in life how do we get back in the right direction.

This week I need to get back in the right direction. I need to center my thoughts on God and my family not in the pursuit of trivial earthly things.

“Thank you Father for giving me the avenue to come back to you. Where I can run to your arms for the safety and encouragement that I need each day. Thank you for your love, grace, and forgiveness that I so often take for granted. Why do I not realize you have all the answers to all situations and true fulfillment in life. Help me realize that as I journey down the road of life. Help me keep my eyes fixed on You”

In Jesus Name,
AMEN

Hits Home

This was an article that I found this week that hit home on priorities. It made me think about what really is in important in life. Hope you enjoy it...........


Since when did God become an excuse? As I was praying on Thursday morning I realized that we use God to justify a lot of the silly things we do. We spend most of our time trying to earn money. We neglect rest, community, and sometimes family in order to get our money. Then we don’t just spend our money, we spend more than we have. We take out loans to buy houses that are bigger than we can afford, and cars that are nicer than we can afford. Then we’re trapped into paying for those things and we have to work harder, or longer hours, or try to get a better paying job. We spend even more time chasing after money. Then at the end of it all we say something So let me get this straight: I’ve neglected the things that I say are most important to me, the things that I believe are most important to God, in order to get something that “God gave me?” Somehow I doubt it. I wonder what life would be like if we didn’t buy the biggest house we could afford and instead bought the house we need. I wonder what it would be like if we weren’t so trapped by our debt that we have to live in fear of losing our jobs. I wonder what our churches would look like if we spent as much time seeking after God as we do chasing after money. I just can’t believe that God’s first priority is my happiness. I have to think that if there is going to be some miracle that it will be that the hungry mouths living on the street will be filled before I am given an H2. I hear phrases like, “I’m trusting God for a house.” Or, “We’re trusting God for our new church building.” But for some reason I rarely hear phrases such as, “I’m trusting God to give houses to the homeless.” Or, “I’m trusting God to feed the hungry.” Maybe it’s because we know that we’re, maybe it’s not a sin for someone to have a nice house. But why blame God for it? Let’s take responsibility for our situation. We have choices to make. Let’s make better choices. Let’s stop using God as an excuse. This health and wealth theology makes me sick sometimes.

A Prayer from Tommy Thompson

Sunday morning was a very moving worship service. Carl led us in worship and Tommy Thompson gave a prayer that was very heartfelt. Below, with his permission and several requests from others, is his prayer from Sunday morning………..


The Lord is my Light and my Salvation
Oh Lord! Our Father!
This is a sad moment here at Central.
In fact, since the announcement of Brother Jim’s impending departure,
It has been like a boat sailing without the wind.
Driving on “E”,
Or having a frog in your throat.
You ask the question: What will life be like without our shepherd?
Your main man, the Colonel? With him being a Colonel in the military I could readily sergeant for him.

First off, I would have it known that I was on his bandwagon from the beginning. The folks in Leavenworth might be saying: “Now you know just how we feel.” Jim, the preacher, has that special way about himself. A little piece of him goes a long way. Just visualize him squaring off with anyone of us. He would go that extra mile to attain the norm. Yes, he is one of us, and more. It has been so easy to like him, listen to him, follow him. Sad to say there is not another Jim in Big Lake. He will solely be missed.

Our congregation is relatively quiet and reserve, but I would hope that there would be many loud amen’s heard from around the auditorium in agreement to this message.

Now we must sing with our hearts such sweet sorrows—such sad departure.

May the grace and goodness of our God and Holy Spirit be with the DuBose’s as they move forward and carve out a new nitch in the great mountain of ‘presidents’ and outstanding folks in our lives.

In Jesus,

AMEN


Tommy T.
October 23, 2005Central Church of Christ

He Is Able to Deliver Thee

I am so glad we have a Deliver! Someone that can take us out of the filth and clean us up and make us a child of a King! These Ancient Words are still powerful today.......

Words & Music:
Wil­liam A. Og­den,
Ed­win O. Ex­cell (New York: 1887)


Tis the grandest theme through the ages rung;
Tis the grandest theme for a mortal tongue;
Tis the grandest theme that the world e’er sung,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Refrain
He is able to deliver thee,
He is able to deliver thee;
Though by sin oppressed, go to Him for rest;
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Tis the grandest theme in the earth or main;
Tis the grandest theme for a mortal strain;
Tis the grandest theme, tell the world again,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Refrain

Tis the grandest theme, let the tidings roll
To the guilty heart, to the sinful soul;
Look to God in faith, He will make thee whole,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

What Do You Fear?

President Franklin Roosevelt assured people that "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."

What do you Fear?

What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of rats? Are you afraid of worms? Are you afraid of heights? The premise of NBC's game show Fear Factor is that they take your fears and multiply them by 100! People who are afraid of rats get placed in a box and covered completely with rats. If you're afraid of heights, you'll cringe while watching contestants climb out of a car suspended a hundred feet in the air to pull out flags at the front and rear of the car. If you battle and defeat your fears you get $50,000!

"Even when I walk through the dark valley of death, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You welcome me as a guest, anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings"
Psalm 23:4-5

Early Morning Therapy

Have you ever been watched by someone so much that they can actually tell time when they see you? Every morning at 5:00 a.m., I hit the streets of Osage City for my early morning run. I can honestly say that I am the only NUT running at that time each day. But over the past several years many people actually have stated to me, “I appreciate it when you run by my house, because I know what time it is”. I never really thought about that. Each morning, I see the same cars turning on the same roads. I see the same police officer driving the same route flashing his lights three times as I wave to him. I see many neighbors getting their morning papers and waving or saying hi to me. But what really drives me crazy is DOGS; when it’s dark and you have a dog dart out that is ready to bite your leg off. I have had many experiences running Osage City. Dogs, skunks, badgers, rabbits, panthers, horses and cows….no bears yet. Oh My!

I use my morning run as therapy. It allows me time alone with my Heavenly Father. We talk about some very personal issues. I appreciate how He listens and how He helps me with the decisions that I will have to make for the day. I have asked Him for some strange things over the years, but guess what? He always listens. I believe He knows each morning when I begin my run that we are about to begin a conversation. I am thankful for the avenue of prayer that was made possible by Jesus Christ.

I encourage you to take time each day to begin a wonderful conversation with God. If you do start running, watch out for the dogs!

The Joy of the Redeemed

Ten years ago this verse was introduced to me in a very special way. It talks about the Joy of the Redeemed!

Isaiah 35

The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the LORD,
the splendor of our God.

Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
say to those with fearful hearts,
"Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you."

Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.

The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
And a highway will be there;
it will be called the Way of Holiness.
The unclean will not journey on it;
it will be for those who walk in that Way;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
No lion will be there,
nor will any ferocious beast get up on it;
they will not be found there.

But only the redeemed will walk there,
and the ransomed of the LORD will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Awesome In This Place

A morning praise to our Father.................

Awesome In This Place
Dave Billingham

Lyrics:
As I come into Your presence
Past the gates of praise
Into Your sanctuary
Til we're standing face to face
I look upon Your countenance
I see the glory of Your Holy face
I can only bow down and say...

You are awesome in this place, Mighty God
You are awesome in this place, Abba Father
You are worthy of all praise
To You our lives we raise
You are awesome in this place, Mighty God

Life

There are things for us to cherish and enjoy every day of our lives. We may have to really look for those things sometimes, but it will add meaning in life, which will encourage and satisfy us.

Watch children at play...gaze up at the sky and watch the movement of God's clouds...watch the birds looking for their food.Gaze out your window and just look around at the beautiful scenery of God's handiwork...stand outside letting the breeze gently brush your face.Enjoy a cup of coffee or tea outside with music softly playing...watch the sun rising in the morning and setting in the evening.

Live you life each day as you would climb a mountain. Getting a occasional glance toward the summit keeps the goal in mind. Many beautiful scenes are to be observed from every direction. Climb life’s mountain slowly, steadily, enjoying each passing moment.

God's handiwork is all around us---not only in the form of foliage, animals, but in people. Take time to enjoy what God has done and is doing! You'll enjoy what you are doing a lot more. Take time to talk to God about what He has given you.

Slow down and enjoy the life God has given you. View it with thanksgiving in your heart. He did it all for you and me. He did not mean for us to go through life and not enjoy it. Appreciate the things God has given and done for you. Then give Him the praise and thanks He deserves.

People Need the Lord

People Need The Lord
Greg Nelson and Phill McHugh
1983 River Oaks Music

Everyday they pass me by,
I can see it in their eye;
Empty people filled with care,
Headed who knows where.
On they go through private pain,
Living fear to fear;
Laughter hides the silent cries
Only Jesus hears.

People need the Lord,
People need the Lord;
At the end of broken dreams,
He's the open door.
People need the Lord,
People need the Lord;
When will we realize
People need the Lord.

We are called to take His light
To a world where wrong is right;
What could be too great a cost
For sharing life with one who's lost?
Through His love our hearts can feel
All the grief they bear;
They must hear the Words of Life
Only we can share.

People need the Lord,
People need the Lord;
At the end of broken dreams,
He's the open door.
People need the Lord,
People need the Lord;
When will we realize
That we must give our lives,
For people need the Lord.
People need the Lord.

Understanding Poverty

On Monday, USD 420 hosted an all-day workshop for 700 faculty and staff on Dr. Ruby Payne’s book “A Framework for Understanding Poverty”.

The central goal of the book is educating people about the differences that separate economic classes and then teaching them skills to bridge those gulfs. Framework is the method that delivers that message. Ruby's thesis for Framework is simple. Individuals accustomed to personal poverty think and act differently from people in the middle and upper economic classes. Most teachers today come from middle-class backgrounds. Economic class differences, in an educational setting, often make both teaching and learning challenging. Too often, teachers don't understand why a student from poverty is chronically acting out or is not grasping a concept even after repeated explanations. At the same time, the student doesn't understand what he/she is expected to produce and why. Ruby discusses at length the social cues or "hidden rules" that govern how we think and interact in society – and the significance of those rules in a classroom.

How about Church? What are we doing to tear down the walls that sometimes hinder the message of Jesus being preached to ALL people even those in poverty.

Larry James is a minister that works in the inner city in Dallas, Texas. At one time he was a pulpit minister at a large Texas Church but gave that up to minister to those in poverty and despair. He wrote the following poem about those he ministers and lives with on a daily basis:

I Know Poverty
Seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, speaking—
Daily it arrives in waves, torrents,
Contained, carried about in life,
Expressed a person at a time.
Watching weathered, limping people
Trudging about, through and on,
I think of troubled, wrestling, self-possessed Jacob,
Determined to receive some blessing,
hobbled by the experience.

Tears flow from lack—
A mysterious depth releases watery, salty relief—sweat, tears,
Loss, pain, need, laughter—
Always I’m undone by the laughter—
comedic relief.
Holding the children,
So often the products of a search for purpose,
lingering embrace,
Once here the only purpose becomes survival writ large,
So, love abounds as focus fades in a cruel, satisfying circle.

Young—too young—mothers and grandmothers,
Some too young themselves,
Many more far too old
For the demands of children absent daddies.
Blame doesn’t work—
nothing sticks with this hopeless paste!
Responsibility on the forward side
Seems a reasonable goal,
A key to understand, to investigate.

Smells can be fierce or noble,
Sickening or inviting, crushing or hopeful,
Depending on the soul of community—
Are we cooking or surviving?
I know poverty.
The impoverishment of soul,
of spirit,Of private, inner space,
Meant to be a meeting ground,
A host table for sacred conversation among people
Beyond caste and class and race—but it is gone.


For more information on Larry James:
http://www.larryjamesurbandaily.blogspot.com/
Central Dallas Ministries
P.O. Box 710385
Dallas, TX 75371-0385
Phone: 214-823-8710

Rejoice and be Joyful!

Ever have a bad day?
A bad week?
A bad month?
A bad............
I could go on and on.
But how about losing all you have.
All your personal possessions.

Many in the Gulf Coast states have lost everything as well as even some here in the Rossville and northeast Kansas counties last week during the floods.

It’s hard to rejoice when bad things are happening.
Hard to rejoice when you lost your job.
Hard to rejoice when the little ones are teething and you haven’t slept in several nights.
Hard to rejoice when your spouse says I’m leaving.
Hard to rejoice when you can’t pay the bills.
Hard to rejoice when your best friend dies of cancer.
Hard to rejoice when the pain you have is unbearable.

Even through the pain, suffering, and destruction of life there is still One to be thankful for and rejoice and praise continually!

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
Habakkuk 3:17-18

TV or the Bible?

Tuesday night I had a rare evening at home without any school meetings or activities. I turned on the television to see what was on and a show called Rodney came on. The show is a comedy and has been on a couple of seasons. First time I had seen it. The show talked about church and hell. Rodney’s family had been attending church regularly but Rodney didn’t feel like attending. Well his wife and kids finally convinced him he should go. At the worship service Rodney heard some “fire and brimstone” preaching and decided he needed to make some drastic changes in his life. The bad thing about the show is it joked about the concept of heaven and hell. It showed a preacher that was more concerned about football than saving his congregations souls and at the end of the show Rodney and the preacher decide to sit down and have a beer together.

That show did nothing for the cause of Christianity. What it did was make people feel like church is just an option not a necessity. Typical Hollywood telling us what is right and wrong.

Looking at Matthew 7:15-23, we find Jesus stating:
“Not every one that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

Television might show us what they think Christianity should be all about but the Bible gives the correct answers on how we should live a life that is pleasing to God.

Enjoy the Journey

Mike Cope, Minister of the Highland Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas, has some great blogs that he shares with his readers each day. This was a recent blog he posted that hit me "right up side the head". I often forget about the journey and only think about my destination......Enjoy the read!

At our home, we are Shel Silverstein fans. Here's one for today:

I went to find the pot of gold
That's waiting where the rainbow ends.
I searched and searched and searched and searched
And searched and searched, and then--
There it was, deep in the grass,
Under and old and twisty bough.I
t's mine, it's mine, it's mine at last. . . .
What do I search for now?

So often we think that there is some great destination that we're waiting for. We find ourselves "killing time" (a horrible phrase) just waiting for that destination. We forget that it's the journey itself that is full of life.

You can't wait for your kids to grow up so you can have a little peace and quiet. There is the joy of the journey.You can't wait for retirement so you can play golf. There is the joy of the journey.You can't wait for your church to "do things right" so you can be happy. There is the joy of the journey.You can't wait for American to get back to the good old days. There is the joy of the journey.

Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Lion, and the Scarecrow are headed to Oz. But the heart, the courage, and the brain they need come from the journey--not from the diminutive wizard behind the curtain.

Bilbo Baggins' walking song has it right:

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then?
I cannot say.

I have my eyes on an incredible destination. But the journey is filled with joy--even in the midst of pain. I don't want to miss that joy!What's out there on the road for you this day? Don't put off today waiting for Friday. Don't blow off this week waiting for next week or this month waiting for next month or this year waiting for next year. Too many people miss life waiting for something better.

Look out today and smile at THAT spouse, THOSE kids, THAT job, THOSE friends, THAT church, THOSE neighbors.

Reaching People Where They Are

In my professional life we have been in the process of examining learning styles of the new generation. As I have researched many educational systems and philosophies I keep coming up with several articles on generational differences in the church. The following article breaks down the groups that make up our society and church of today.

Reaching People Where They Are
by Roger Palms

If we believe that one method of presenting the Gospel is adequate for all listeners, we may miss out. Why? Because generations hear what we say in the context of their own culture. The Gospel doesn't change, but the way that people hear the Gospel does change.
The Holy Spirit knows the heart of each person in each generation. As faithful followers of Jesus Christ, we can be alert to how the Holy Spirit is reaching out to people where they are and not treat people as though they are the same as we are.

The characteristics of the generational categories are not firmly fixed. People are individuals, and the generations are on a continuum. But as we reach out to people and seek to bear fruit for Christ, we need to be aware of the ways that different generations learn and the cultural influences that they have when they hear the Gospel. Who are these generations?

Millennials --- born 1982 or later

Some 72 million young people comprise this age group. Millennials are the second-largest segment of society.

They respect their parents more than their parents know. They listen to their grandparents more than their grandparents realize. They are savvy to advertising hype, eager to pursue meaningful relationships, interested in what worked in the past. Millennials long for stability.
Who are they? They are Generation Y, the net generation, the echo boom, the bridgers --those who are coming of age in the new millennium. And they are open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
They are curious about concepts of sin and redemption. They experience little residual Christianity in their culture. Many are absolutely certain of only one thing: there are no absolutes.

Many Millennials get their religion from the Internet. They combine Eastern philosophies and New Age leftovers, an eclectic gathering of this and that. Yet Jesus is attractive to them.
Show them who Jesus Christ is.

Busters --- born 1965-1982

Busters are the first of a totally postmodern generation. The 65 million in this age group have been called the X Generation, the Boomer shadow, the nowhere generation, the "shy me?" generation. They don't like those labels.

They long to be respected, to be listened to, to be appreciated. They want to be treated individually, not as a collection or a group. They were latchkey kids, many from divorced and blended families. They watched MTV with its constantly changing images. Feeling is more important than content, process than function.

They would like to fix things, especially the things they think that the generation before them has broken. They want marriages that last. Children are important to them. "How did you stay married?" they ask. "How did you find God?" "What's it like to have inner peace?" they want to know.

They are spiritual, but for many of them anything spiritual will do. They are into "faiths" more than faith. They are looking for something to give them meaning and hope.
Point them to the One who can give that to them.

Boomers --- born 1946-1964

Boomers --- 77 million strong --- have influenced everything around them.
Boomers went through the era of Vietnam War, campus unrest, the "hippie" movement, free speech, free love, the Jesus movement. But they also got caught up in the greedy `80s. They are known as much for being the "me" generation as they are for being the change-theworld-with-a-cause generation.

They want to know how Christianity works, primarily how it works "for me in my life." They want to know, "Will God help me with my finances, my divorce, my children?"

We can speak to that if we will come alongside and hear them. Many Boomers are coming to the point in life where they wonder, "Is this all there is? Isn't there something more?" Boomers are exploring church again, old truths again, hearing again the message that they pushed away when they first rebelled against their parents' generation.

Offer them solid Bible content that they can apply to their lives and discuss with their peers.

Builders --- born 1930-1945

Also called the silent generation, 33 million Builders are sometimes considered the nongeneration. They weren't of age during the Great Depression or during World War II, but they weren't part of the Vietnam War and campus unrest either. They are in-between.
They want certainty; they have a sense of responsibility and duty. They want their lives to count for something.

More resolved than the generations that have followed them, Builders formed their philosophies and convictions during their student years and didn't change too much afterward. But their hearts still have that inner restlessness that God put there.

We can quote the Bible to Builders; they respect it as God's Truth. Yet many may think that they have heard it all before and even may have tried Christianity once --- but what they may have tried was church and rules without having encountered the living Christ as Savior and Lord.

Show them what it means to be right with God by God's definition, to move past faith in faith to faith in Christ.

Seniors --- born 1929 or earlier

Of the 25 million people in this generation, many Seniors came of age during the Great Depression and fought in World War II. They are loyal, conservative, hardworking, patriotic. If they know about Christianity, it may be more denominational than biblical, more like a club to be joined just as they join civic or community organizations.

Seniors may be struggling with illness, with financial limitations, with worries about children and grandchildren, and with loneliness because they have fewer friends still living. They also may be filled with fear: fear for physical safety on the streets, fear of the future, fear of death.

Tell them about the One who takes away all fear. Tell them the Good News of God's peace and security and the certainty of salvation in heaven.Are we ready to change? Our day is similar to the days of the first century. When Cornelius, a Gentile, needed to hear the Gospel, God broke the Apostle Peter out of his old way of thinking so that he could become the evangelist that God wanted him to be. And Peter was big enough to change (Acts 10:1-48).