“Hillcrest Generations: The Builders”
by Tom Goodman
July 6, 2005

Grandma offered to help with her five-year-old grandson when her daughter needed to run a few errands one afternoon.  It amused her, however, when she overheard a conversation between the mother and child as they left Grandma’s house later that afternoon.

The boy’s mother asked, “What did you do with Grandma all day?”

“Oh,” said the boy, “We watched The Young and the Rest of Us.”

I guess that’s what you could call our new Sunday morning series:  The Young and the Rest of Us!  This Sunday morning at 10:45, we begin a new series called “Hillcrest Generations.”  Unlike a lot of start-up churches in Austin that target a single generation, our church has the joy and burden of serving four generations:

         Builders:  Senior Adults
         Boomers:  Median Adults
         Busters:  Young Adults
         Bridgers:  College and Younger

A multi-generational church gives you the chance to learn from the insights and experiences of those who are younger than you are and those who are older than you are.  At the same time, leaders in a multi-generational church face some unique challenges when trying to arrange activities, budgets, and worship services!  It’s important that you keep in mind the things the generations have in common and the things that make the generations different.

We’re going to spend the next four Sundays looking at Hillcrest Builders, Hillcrest Boomers, Hillcrest Busters, and Hillcrest Bridgers.  We’ll look at the characteristics that define each Hillcrest Generation, the contributions that each generation makes to the Body, and the challenges that Scripture gives to each generation.

This week we begin with our wonderful Builders—a generation that practically re-built the world after World War II and built strong families and churches after the Korean War.  We’ll also baptize several folks, introduce new members, and observe the Lord’s Supper, so you won’t want to miss the morning activities.