Standing at the front of Wilshire on Sunday to help serve communion, I was heartened by the wide age span of our congregation. Actually, I see it every week in bits and pieces, but because everyone came forward for communion this time, I was face-to-face with the trend.
Serving beside Katie Murray, we were visited first by a wave of youth because they sit in the first several pews. But then after that, there were seniors and middle agers; young parents and grandparents; singles and couples.
I believe it’s a good indicator of a healthy church to have plenty of young people but also a mix of ages. It’s like a multigenerational family that shows strong roots but also has signs of a promising future.
Sadly, that’s not always the case. Before I came to Wilshire in my early 30s, I visited a church one block from where I lived at the time. I was disappointed to see nobody who looked to be under 60 years old, and I felt overwhelmed after the service when members swarmed me to offer words of welcome and encouragement to come back. I decided right then I wasn’t prepared to be the beginning of a new wave of young people that might help them. A few years later, the church closed. I had moved away by then after a burglary, and the neighborhood appears to have declined as well.
Fast forward to this past Tuesday, when LeAnn and I hosted National Night Out in our yard. We had the regulars who always show up and represent the upper range of the age demographic. That was great, but to our surprise and delight, we had a new wave of young singles and couples with children, dogs, and even a newborn in a stroller. While a grade-schooler hopped down a hopscotch grid she had chalked on the sidewalk, young couples who had just met made plans to walk downtown for dinner sometime soon.
I said “surprise” because our Embree neighborhood is the oldest in Garland, dating to 1886 when it was a stand-alone community. As such, it’s not the newest and freshest place to be. It’s not like the suburban neighborhood I grew up in with everyone moving into a new house at the same time. Our homes span the late 1800s to the 2020s, our educations and careers are different, as are our races and countries of origin. But the glue is the people who choose to live here and make it their home.
Especially the young people. I remember my grandparents talking about this “young couple” and that “young person” and I sort of thought they were talking down in a way. But now I’m looking at the younger generations from my grandparents’ perspective and understand that description is imbued with a whole lot of hope for the future. In our neighborhood, it means this will continue to be a good place to live as long as we wish to live here. The same is true at Wilshire.
That doesn’t mean things won’t change. Neighborhoods change, as do churches, with an influx of young people. But if the young people respect the history they are joining and are willing to listen and learn from those who are older, there can be a future together that is multigenerational and good for all who wish to call it their home or their church.
There’s a song on the Eagles’ last album titled “It’s Your World Now” with these words:
It’s your world now,
Use well the time,
Be part of something good,
Leave something good behind.
Those are good words to share with the young people of Embree and Wilshire, and a good reminder for those of us who still have plenty to give.