More Than a Name: Generation 128

It was the beginning of the 2020 pandemic.

I was growing in my relationship with God more than I had in any other season. I would wake up in prayer and devotion, read my Bible for hours, and fast often. As my time with God increased, my desire for community grew. He was giving me a heart like His, connecting with other like-minded young Christians became my prayer. I hoped that at least when the world opened back up, I could find a church with a strong young adult ministry. I had only lived in Memphis for 10 months, and for 8 of those months I worked a 16 hour shift every Sunday; so, I did not belong to a church.

One day, my prayer for community was answered early and in the most unexpected way. I was tagged on social media to a post inviting me to a virtual young adult Bible study. This is why I said it was unexpected, the person who tagged me in the post was a social media friend, but he and I had never had a conversation and didn't exactly know one another. In total, he tagged less than 10 people making it seem more personal. On top of that, the Bible study was sponsored by a church in Michigan.

In hindsight, I think I was invited on accident. They probably meant to tag some other Deja, but with God, things always work out the way they are supposed to.

Now back to why you're reading this, how we got our name.

During one of the Zoom calls, the teacher asked a question that would forever shape my perspective on calling, purpose, and fruitfulness.

What was the first commandment God gave to man?

I offered up what I thought, mentioning loving your neighbor and giving praise and honor to God, because of course those are very important things we should do.

He guided us to Genesis 1:28, something I had heard before and read before, but never fully understood.

And God blessed them [granting them certain authority] and said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth, and subjugate it [putting it under your power]; and rule over (dominate) the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and every living thing that moves upon the earth.

Genesis 1:28 AMP

What I learned in that moment was that Genesis 1:28 is more than a historical recap of God's intention for Adam and Eve. It is a commandment and God's desire for all mankind, even today. Broken down simply, God placed man in a specific location and gave them authority in that space, commanding them to dominate it and be fruitful in it.

We are not different from Adam and Eve in that regard; God has placed us all (or is yet calling us) to specific territories to operate in purpose having dominion and being fruitful. For someone that may look like being a light in their community or home, for another that may be reshaping the education system, for us it's promoting community and purpose through game play. Either way, we were all created for something.

After some transition, the group was no longer a part of the church and became a separate virtual entity and I became a co-lead. One of the things we needed was a new name. I thought hard on it and I prayed about it, but I could not get Genesis 1:28 out of my mind.

Then it hit me. Generation 28.

Inspired by the verse, the group represented being a people (generation) intentional about living out God's intended purpose for our lives. Having dominion in the places He has sent you: your career, your family, your neighborhood, and being fruitful in all things.

Flyer for the virtual group with logo. The group would later disband as opportunities for more in-person interactions started to happen.

Although Generation 28 was the name of a virtual Bible study group, it was always bigger than that. It was a movement and a call back to Genesis 1:28.

If you have been following for a while, then you know that the name was later repurposed for what is now known as Generation 128, faith-inspired tabletop games. But the mission and the purpose behind the name remains the same.

We make games to bring people together and inspire purpose, but Generation 128 is more that. It is anyone seeking or walking in purpose, being fruitful, and living out God's plan.

You are not just supporting or following Generation 128.

You are Generation 128.