The Second-Plus Generation Pastor 

Your character

You are the Hyphen generation.  You know, as in “Mexican-hyphen-American”. You’re not American enough for the Americans, and you’re not Mexican enough for the Mexicans (or the Koreans, Nigerians, or whoever).  Both cultures constantly remind you “You should be more like us!” You may not feel understood or accepted anywhere. You’re asked to love a homeland you may have never visited. You’re expected to fall in love with a Jesus who speaks a language you barely understand.

The third generation are even more ethnically diverse than the second.  By the third generation there’s a high likelihood that you’re of mixed race, or in a mixed marriage, and don’t speak a word of your grandparents’ language.  You’re sick of being asked “Where are you FROM?” But if someone asks about your ethnic background, the answer may not be that easy.

You may consider this hyphenated existence as a burden. But in reality, it is an amazing strength. While millions of native-born Americans and first-generation immigrants are monocultural, you have the privilege of being a multicultural person.  You have the innate ability to understand and empathize with diverse kinds of people. And you automatically resonate with those who feel like they don’t fit in. Those skills are highly valuable to the Body of Christ.

Your challenges 

Monocultural pastors, whether native-born American or first-generation immigrant, need to present Christ in ways that are relevant to their listeners.  That means they may not present Christ in ways that make sense to you.  And the life issues that monocultural Christians struggle with may be quite different than yours.  There isn’t much discipleship material developed for you. It may be hard for you to fall deeply in love with Jesus.  It may be hard to share Christ with other second- and third-gen.

Monocultural pastors aren’t likely to empower you for leadership.  In most first-generation immigrant churches, power is reserved for older married men. Most immigrant churches are small and only have one pastor, so there’s no place for your leadership skills.  And few American churches will hire a second-generation Mexican, Vietnamese or Liberian as their next pastor.  It wouldn’t even dawn on them. We desperately need you in leadership—but in most cases there won’t be a clear path to a leadership role. 

Your calling

Your Calling

We need you. We need your giftedness. You have a high and holy calling.  Because I’m a preacher, I couldn’t resist developing a 3-point outline of your holy callings:

1. You are called to embrace your mixed heritage as a blessing. Hebrews 11:13 says of Abraham and his family, These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. Monocultural Christians acknowledge in their heads that we’re strangers and exiles on earth. But in reality, earth feels like home to them. America feels like home to homeowners who have lived here for generations. The motherland feels like home to first-generation immigrants undergoing homesickness.  The very reality that no place and no culture on earth feels like home to you may be a huge asset, drawing you to emotionally embrace heaven as home and the Body of Christ as your people.
2. You are called to become a people of God. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:4-5 Most Christians more closely identify with their identity based on ethnicity, citizenship, race, denomination, gender, or political affiliation than with their identity as children of God and members of the global Body of Christ. This can be liberating news to second-generation who don’t feel they’ve found their place of belonging. God has already prepared that place for you.  He is your loving heavenly Father. Every Christian on earth is your spiritual brother or sister. As you know, families can be full of confict and sibling rivalry.  Not all of us are particularly loving to our brothers and sisters.  But many are.  Each of us needs to find or launch a local congregation where brothers and sisters genuinely love one another.
3. You are called to leadership. All Christians receive spiritual gifts, including leadership. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Romans 12:6-8 Some of you have the gifts of leadership, teaching or shepherding. The future of America is multicultural.  Multicultural people like you are precisely the kind of people we need in the pastorates of the future—and today.  It’s my ambition through the work of Immigrant Ministry Connections to bring American and first-generation pastors together in relationship, so that over time they will realize the need to empower the second generation.  Pray that it may be so!

Here are some of the resources of Immigrant Ministry Connections you may find particularly useful.

• Subscribing to our weekly blogs will keep you current on what’s happening in North American cross-cultural ministry
• You will find resources to more clearly understand your identity in Christ, cultivate your leadership skills, and engage other generations through our free online course Empowering the Second Generation.
• To join a community of pastoral leaders committed to multiplying healthy churches and partnerships among all generations, consider membership in The Merging Streams Coalition.