Jo Bower's Blog

Okay, let’s see, IF I’m Gen X or Gen Y or Baby Boomer, or silver ….
And depending on my age, credit rating, race, religious affiliation, or place of residence
THEN I must like certain music, movies, books, food, enjoy certain cruises,
Worship best with certain styles, drive certain cars, buy certain electronics,
Have a certain knowledge and competency range, and work at certain jobs.

Things and ideas are sorted, compiled, added to my e-mail, show up in my mail,
Put as commercials in the programs I’m supposed to like, and I am
Couponed, credit carded, service offered, and polled.
And I’m tempted to register as an independent voter so thw phone calls will stop.
All this has me worried.

Humans have a good tendency built in to clump together into families through which we
View the rest of the world with a slight “Us and Them” attitude.
But we also push it to an arrogant extreme that results in fear and distain of each other.
Then the media gives us names to hang on each other
Driving more wedges between generations, religions, races, regions, and political parties.

And I have begun noticing people I read are calling for resistance:
Not the armed or marching in the streets kind.
But I am joining the call to resist being demographed,
Led by emotional anti-people politics, defined by what I stand against,
And, as a Christian, being seen as anti-everything, narrow-minded or mean-spirited.

It’s going to be a quiet thing.
A smile when someone expects a frown, a quiet complaint when things aren’t right,
Buying books for my kindle my generation isn’t supposed to like,
Being someone they don’t expect a Christian to be,
Changing the way I talk about God and my relationship with Jesus.

Meeting them in places they don’t expect me to be.
Setting a living example of someone meeting life face-on,
Not hidden in church whose activities cover my life’s realm.
Letting them know God fixes things that are broken,
When I, like they, feel alone and shattered.