So each generation should set its hope anew on God,
not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.
Psalm 78:7 (NLT)

Yesterday afternoon we were surprised in the afternoon by a visit from Taylor and Clayton. The kids were in town for a friend’s going-away party and stopped by. We sat in the living room and enjoyed a pleasant conversation that meandered through several different topics. It was so nice to see them and to chat for a while.

As the father with an empty nest, my interactions with my children are less frequent (yet in some ways more satisfying) than when they lived under our roof. From a more remote and distant vantage point I have more time to observe them walking their own respective paths, to ponder, and to pray.

Their 9-11 generation is so much different than the Cold War generation I experienced growing up. When I was young the LP and 8-track tape turned into the cassette tape and compact disc. Their generation experienced the iPod and the digital age of music in a cloud. We ducked and covered in fear of Soviet planes dropping atomic bombs from the skies. Their generation fearfully faced the reality of terrorists flying planes full of people into our landmarks. We experienced an economic boom. They are leaving college post recession with a dismal job market and a gloomy economic outlook.

We live in different times. We come from different generations. We have different perspectives and see the same issues from different way-points on life’s road. Still, God is a faithful shepherd. In the same way, my Cold War generation is different than my parents Post War generation which was different than their parents Depression Era Generation. I see the differences in perspectives and life styles. Yet love and faith are constants, even if vantage points change. Each generation discovers their faith anew and finds God amidst their own unique chapter of God’s story.