I’m friends with my dad on Facebook. My CD collection may or may not include at least one boy band. I vividly remember sitting in my high school theology class and learning of the 9/11 attacks. I am motivated by a career that both challenges and fulfills me. I am not too lazy to make a bowl of cereal. Nonetheless, I’m a Millennial (aka a member of Gen Y or the “Me” Generation). Like the Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, and people of Gen X before us and Gen Z after us, we’re bound together by certain defining events, pop culture icons, technological developments, and ideals, all of which combine to lend us a unique perspective on and role in the mission of the Church.
As a seasoned mission tripper and former missionary, I am honored to have joined the Concordia Publishing House (CPH) Marketing and Ecommerce team in 2012. To me, it’s a mission field of a different sort, one that weaves together the strengths and limitations of my generation in all the best ways. I use more spreadsheets than saws nowadays but still connect others to Christ daily, as all of us are called to do. Generations fade, but God’s love for all and desire that all would come to know Him are immutable: “Whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before Him” (Ecclesiastes 3:14).
The upcoming Association of Lutheran Mission Agencies (ALMA) conference, to be held January 26–27, 2017, in St. Louis, MO, seeks to delve further into the who, what, when, where, and why of Gen Y. “ReforMission 2017: On His Mission” will feature a panel discussion with representatives from Concordia University Irvine, Lutheran Church Charities, and Lutheran Hour Ministries as well as a number of other mission-minded Millennials like me. New this year are scholarships to help defray costs. In true Millennial fashion, you can learn more and register online. (Sorry, no app for that.) Then, be sure to snap a selfie of how excited you are for two jam-packed days of learning and networking!