Never Retired from Love: A Boomer’s Guide to Loving Millennials
Dear Boomer,
God has gifted you in special ways and has taken you on a journey where your life experiences equip you to pray for, affirm, and even mentor a Millennial. It is a privilege to walk with another on life’s journey, but it is also a commitment that requires love.
Millennials were born between 1981 and 1996 and are known as the Lost Generation.
9/11 was a traumatic experience for American Millennials, ripping apart their perception of safety and creating anxiety. A recent poll by YouGov revealed 30% of Millennials feel lonely and suffer from a perception of isolation, 27% have no close friends, and 22% have no friends.
Journey With Us
Millennials long to be heard, valued, and affirmed. In a talk on millennials, Heather Cox, a Digital Communication Strategist stated, “We want people to journey with us.”
Millennials desire a cause to live for and a community they can become part of.
Invite a Millennial for coffee. Pray faithfully for them.
Make time to journey with at least one Millennial of your gender, who is longing to learn.
Be a Barnabas
You have the opportunity to encourage someone who is lonely. How?
By becoming a person of beauty like Barnabas. When the believers feared to fellowship with Paul, Barnabas became his advocate. You may remember in Acts he was known as “Son of consolation”. Barnabas encouraged and inspired those he mentored to move beyond their pain, circumstances and isolation to become great men of God.
Do you feel nervous or unappreciated? That is difficult. But remember God gave you a mandate to reach out to others.
Do you recall when you were young and felt unappreciated and unheard? Take courage. Your purpose in life is not finished. In fact, there is no retirement from God’s service. Ask the Lord what He desires of you.
If you engage with a Millennial, you may be pleasantly surprised. Though their language and values seem different than yours, they share some of the same desires and similar heartaches as you. Let Christ be the bridge – eradicating any gap between you and them. After all, we are all human made in the image of God, regardless of what generation we come from.
Tami Sue Webster
I had the joy of interviewing Tami Sue Eamer Webster on this topic. We first met over 30 years ago when she and her husband of 37 years, Bill, were working with Operation Mobilisation.
Tami Sue is a gifted producer and communicator whose passion is to help individuals engage with the Word of God. She has enjoyed mentoring Millennials for the past 15 years.
In this interview we dive into the struggles, joys and disciplines of mentoring, giving you a Boomer’s Guide to Loving Millennials.
"Transparency brings hope to the next generation."
More About Tami Sue
Tami Sue Webster has a background in media and communication, where she has worked for both the profit and non-profit sectors. She worked with Operation Mobilization in Southeast Asia and Europe.
Married for 37 years, Tami Sue has two grown children and divides her time between her home in Orlando and her family in Canada.
She is passionate about Perspectives, butterfly gardening and mentoring the next generation.
"You're never retired from love."
