I made an early morning trip to DFW Airport today. Our daughter, Katie Seale, and husband John left before 7:00 AM to begin a seventeen day odyssey. They are flying to Kosovo to visit John's sister Connie who is a missionary-teacher. There adventure will not end there;they will then head to Kenya. John has a connection with that African nation having been part of Ndoto, a ministry to the children there. Katie and John continue to sponsor one of those children. John, by the way, serves as director of operations of LINC-North Texas, a non-profit that, among other things, mentors academically at risk students in area public schools.
Later this week our daughter-in-law, Kristen Seals, will leave for three months in Zambia. Kristen works for Family Legacy, a non-profit that is committed to the orphans of Zambia. Family Legacy operates a Christian academy but also conducts a summer camp. Our son, Mark, will join Kristen for ten days in July. This will be Mark's second trip and he has a faith connection with the ten boys he has arranged sponsorship for. Mark spent seven years operating New Hope, a community center in east Dallas. In his current role, as lead pastor at The Crossing Church-Dallas, Mark continues to have a contagious passion for the lost in the city.
Mark, Kristen, Katie and John are all millennials. Unlike many of their peers they are spiritually connected. One characteristic they do share with others their age is a desire to make a difference. It is no coincidence that millennials lead the way when it comes to being entrepreneurs. Many of those ventures involve non-profits that seek to make a difference. We can write them off as being idealistic, but there is no denying that they are much less materially focused than baby boomers and members of generation X. Many of them prefer to live in urban environments, rather than the suburbs. Some would rather take public transportation and use Uber than own a car.
Millennials have grown up in a very different world. They have never experience life without a commuter, and probably have no idea what a set of encyclopedias look like. The world is a mouse-click away, and they can relate to friends around the world via skype. Katie made arrangements beso that she can text us from wherever she is on this trip. Travel is easy and even affordable. There is almost no part of the world that cannot be reached out of DFW Airport. Unlike many members of my generation who love to travel for leisure, or to see historic sights, millennials want to travel to make a difference. Maybe, just maybe, we could learn something from them.
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