I love Athens. You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who has spent any amount of time here to disagree with you. For some, it’s a kind of Neverland— a place that exists in memory as the hallowed ground on which the years 18-22 were joyously spent with cheap rent and flowing kegs and balancing research papers with afternoon naps and football games under a clear Georgia sky. For others, it’s an eclectic and creative haven, burgeoning with music and art and great food and more great food. It’s the land of a thousand coffee shops, bars, music venues, and places to brunch. But it’s a hard place to live, too. 

Hard in the sense that it’s transient. (I’ve talked about this before.) But it’s also hard because despite its cultural offerings and prevalent scene of academia, it’s a broken place. The poverty is astounding. The industrial and economic infrastructure is unstable. The city that is loved by so many is often left by so many.  Athens is able to remain a perfect snapshot in memory because if you don’t invest in the city, you never know its troubles, its depth, its bleakness. (People are like this, too, I think.)

I have felt (ever since I decided to stay here back in the summer of 2009 after graduating from UGA) a certain kinship with this place. Something holding me here. Some unfinished work or duty to remain in the city I love. I couldn’t exactly explain it, and many of my friends who served this place well and loved it just as I did moved on, beginning to love new places and new cities. We all did what we felt we needed to do. And I felt I needed to stay in Athens.

One of my best friends from college who now lives in Atlanta sent me a sermon a few months back from her church and said that she thought of me when she heard it. She and a number of my pals from UGA have grown to love Atlanta and many of them have “committed” to living in the city, probably forever. It’s not an easy thing to do when you’re a 20-something to say “This is my home. I am dedicated to its welfare. I am for the city.” especially when it’s so tempting to wander and explore and be transient and free and experimental*. The sermon, based on Jeremiah 29:4-8, was about establishing permanence, investing in infrastructure, and planning for a long and faithful work wherever the Lord sends you. And I think that’s what He’s doing with me here in Athens, with my friends in Atlanta, and a myriad of other people across the state, country, and globe. 

If you’re thinking about permanence, about your place in the world, about the brokenness of your city or your school or your town or your job… listen to this. Even if you’re reading this and are not a Christian… I urge you to listen.

Download Sermon: Renewal | Pastor Leonce Crump II

Every time he says “Atlanta” just swap it with your city. It probably applies. I could have written the whole sermon down, but here are some nuggets I found particularly helpful:

“You cannot will yourself to care about this city. The Holy Spirit has to break your heart for what breaks His.”

“Pray that god would alter your heart so that you would not quit… that you would see the city the way He sees it and love it the way He loves it. And because of that, we seek its welfare so that it will reflect the glory of God.”

“Jesus wants far more than your stuff or your money… he wants your whole heart.”

*And it’s not that those things are bad. In fact, I’d argue that a certain amount of wandering and exploration and transience is a good thing, especially for the young and unattached. But what would it look like if we invested in our cities, cared about its people, and sought to make it a better place?

Yes, the Digital Atlanta Conference has been filled with learning awesome things about the tech and digital world from interesting people in cool jobs. But there’s also just a lot of ATL Love… folks who love their city and want to see it succeed, prosper, and define what’s on the horizon for technology, creativity, and well, living well. 

I was a little afraid all this ATL Love Talk was going to make me want to move to Atlanta (which has long been my nagging, irrational fear.) And while I do LOVE the people and the food and the creativity that makes up that city… I’m not yet convinced it’s the place for me. In a way, it made me more passionate about living in Athens. 

Athens, if you’ve ever been here you’ll know, is this wonderful little micro-city that breathes and synthesizes a unique culture flavor. It’s at one moment this robust, yuppy, scholastic enclave and the next it’s a teeming, swirling hotbed of music, art, and entertainment.  The food, outstanding. The people, so strange and smart. The architecture, southern hospitality and walkable streets make it a beauty to behold. 

Despite all that, Athens lacks a lot of what could make it into a world-class city where people want to live forever and not just an amazing college town where people stay for a few years before moving on to something more permanent. 

Athens is a transient place. As a permanent resident, this is something that aches my heart continually. I meet new people often knowing that they are only here for a season… mostly because of being in school or the lack of diverse career options. Athens is a training ground because of the University… and one that often feeds our talented residents to the nearest Big City when the pickin’s get slim. 

Don’t get me wrong: people love Athens. Anyone who has ever lived here will forever save a small part of their heart that is the shape of The Classic City.  But how do we build a community here that people want to invest in before they leave for something Bigger and Greater just down the road? I don’t have the answers but I’m excited to think about them and what it could mean for my beloved Pretty Little City. 

So far the Digital Atlanta Conference has been awesome.

Atlanta, you’re not too shabby yourself.

I’m in ATL for a conference this week (if you’re at DigitalAtl, HOLLA!) and last night I had my first Antico Pizza experience with some of my pals. 

Ya’ll. 

This was the best pizza, nay, the best food I have ever tasted. And it’s not even a breakfast food. All 3 of us were being polite (ok, maybe it was just me who was coveting and the other 2 were just full) and not wanting to eat the last piece of our shared pie…. and as I was staring at it contemplatively… ANTICOPIZZAHOMEGIRL just swooped in and took away our tray. 

I’ve never considered dumpster diving until that moment. Seems legit, now. 

Pancake time. Oh, you fancy now.

A Good Rule of Thumb: if the menu looks good enough to eat, the food is probably the bomb as well. Also, any place that serves breakfast all day.

Good design. Good food. Great friend. Always a joy to travel to the Big City!

My sweet friend Meghan (the one who got married 2 weekends ago, yay!) works for a church in Atlanta and they are putting on this bomb-diggity mini-conference in November. 

Yeah. I just said Bomb-Diggity. Deal. 

If this isn’t the story of my life… I don’t know what is. If you’re recently graduated, are about to graduate, or just interested in learning about what it means to Be a Grown-Up (my favorite topic!)… then look into this. Gonna be awesome. 

We thought we’d be at a certain place by a certain age, but life has not necessarily met all of our expectations. Adulthood is a bittersweet reality of joys and disappointments, and as young adults sometimes we just need to hear some wisdom from an older generation and know everything is going to be okay. 

Join us November 4th and 5th at The Church of The Apostles for a mini-conference on the reality of career, finance, and relationships. 

»Sign Up Here«

[The Center for Faith and Culture is a Young Adults Ministry in Atlanta, GA]

I would put the food from Athens up against any other city, any day. All day. Our Pretty Little City knows what’s up, that’s fo sho.

But when EB had a free night at the Ritz-Carlton and Meghs was able to meet us downtown… we just couldn’t say no to the Big City.

Or Atlanta’s JCT Kitchen… which may or may not have some of the best food I’ve ever eaten.  I wanted to curl up and live there forever, but that just might have been the wine.

When we got to the hotel, we put on the robes (because, um… they have ROBES) and ate the little chocolates on our pillows and promptly fell asleep at midnight whilst watching Law and Order.

Sometimes… being a grown-up isn’t all bad.