“Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. ²⁶ She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. ²⁷ She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, ²⁸ for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” ²⁹ Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. ³⁰ Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” ³¹ And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’” ³² He looked all around to see who had done it. ³³ But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. ³⁴ He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” Mark 5:25-34

We are talking about the phrase “OK, Boomer”, and digging deeper into the reasons for why people from different generations do not always agree with one another. And, we are asking the question: “Why do people resist change?” Well, here is the second of four possible reasons:

 2. People feel overwhelmed or stressed during times of change, and many often feel overwhelmed and stressed every day.

Fatigue can be a killjoy for change. Fatigue and stress can be a serious health concern. But, what is fatigue? We can experience fatigue in three different dimensions: mental fatigue, physical fatigue, and emotional fatigue. Mental fatigue is what we feel after exerting ourselves cognitively, using our brains to solve tasks. We can experience mental fatigue doing simple, repetitive tasks, or more complex tasks like writing a paper or completing an exam. We often experience physical fatigue doing tasks that really tire us out, like running a marathon, or doing heavy labor. Physical fatigue comes from the depletion of stored energy to power our limbs. Emotional exhaustion is perhaps most difficult to define because it often affects us physically and mentally as well. It is the fatigue that stems from stress as well as social demands, like when you have to smile even though you are not happy. When we gather together as the people of G-d, or even in a business meeting, we may be a gathering of people who are fatigued and stressed just from life. This can be one of the reasons people may resist change — simply because they’re tired. And when people are tired, they tend to be cranky, angry, and irritable (though this never happens in the church, right?). When this is the case, leaders have to be understanding of people’s complaints and attentive to their stress levels throughout the change process. And when we can move the reasoning for change away from the part of the brain that deals with emotion, and confront it with facts and reasoning, then we may find people will be more accepting of change.

The woman with the bleeding disorder was tired and at her wits end. She was desperate for change – and in particular a change in her luck and in her health. She was physically fatigued for she had suffered for so many years. She was mentally fatigued because she had worked through all the people she thought might help her, and she was still sick. And she was emotionally fatigued because she was at her wits end. And so she turned to Jesus. She had heard of his ability to change people’s lives, and she figured she had nothing to lose. We shouldn’t wait until we are so mentally, physically, or emotionally fatigued that we turn to Jesus out of desperation. Instead, like the woman who heard about Jesus, we should take the time now to investigate his love, mercy and grace – and we shouldn’t let anything stand in our way. Jesus is waiting for us to finally decide we do not need to face this life alone. And when we go to Jesus in faith, he too will say to us “Your faith has saved your, and will make the difference in this life, and in the age to come.”

Pastor Dave

“A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy.” Luke 18:18-23

“OK, BOOMER” — “OK boomer” is a derisive repudiation, a bit mocking in tone, like a verbal eye roll — and it’s directed specifically by a young person toward someone older.

Back in 1963, when the term “baby-boomer” was first published in a Salt Lake Tribune article, it carried just one definition: a person born during the tail end or in the decade after World War II, when the United States saw a tremendous spike in births. Frequently shortened to “boomer,” over the years the phrase has been imbued with layers of meaning and implication. Much like “millennial,” “boomer” doesn’t merely indicate a person born in a given time or place, it’s a blanket term referencing the predominant trends, values and concerns of an entire generation.

Thus begins an article I recently read written by Nicole Spector on November 6, 2019. I am intrigued by this phenomenon and trend where a phrase gets traction and legs and becomes part of the vernacular. I have been using it myself in the last two weeks, and I am a boomer. Of course, I am not using the comeback in the manner that millennials are using it. And I am not sure everyone understands where it came from and what it represents. In my efforts to try to come up with topics for devotions that not only are interesting to read, but might challenge us in our daily conversations, I am going to take the month of December to focus on this phrase “OK, BOOMER”, and perhaps find some talking points that might make us all stop and pause – before shouting back “You Millennials, get off my lawn.”

The phrase “Boomer” has become a catchall phrase for someone older who is close-minded and resistant to change. You don’t necessarily have to have been born into the “baby boomer” generation to be lumped into this category – you just have to be seen as representing the characteristics of someone born to that generation – like being resistant to change. Let’s talk about the resistance to change.

Why do people resist change? Well, here are five possible reasons:

1. People fear “difference”-especially when there’s no precedent

For the most part, we are creatures of habit. We love routine and sameness. If you are looking to do something new, and it hasn’t been done before, there will be some who likely can’t see the end from the beginning. Every group needs a visionary, but merely stating your vision is not enough. If you hope to effect change, there needs to be a sense of transparency, meaning you have to show people the how’s, what’s and where’s, not just tell. Clear and open communication is key. Wherever possible, keep some things the same. Stay focused on the important reasons change is being sought. And avoid a “follow-the-leader-because-I-say-so” attitude.

The rich young ruler in the parable above left being very sad – of course we do not know whether he did what Jesus said or not, the text does not provide that information. But from what Jesus says next, we get the impression that he left Jesus without “hearing Jesus’ message or changing his ways” because he feared change. In his case, the change would have meant a dramatically different way of living – because he was very wealthy. But this is perhaps the point Jesus is making – our attachments and possessions begin to possess us – more than we possess them. Those possessions can be monetary, they can be physical, and they can be models of thinking, behaving and deciding. Fear can be a positive possession – like I am afraid of bears and will run if I see one. But fear can also be a negative possession – and one that is hard to do away with. This is where knowledge, communication and transparency come into play. The more we remain open in our lives, listening to new possibilities, asking questions, and remaining “…in the conversation” rather than withdrawing and putting our fingers in our ears, the easier it will be to face our fears – including our fear of change.

Pastor Dave