Missional engagement in suburbia

I wanted to introduce you guys to one of my teachers and mentors, Alan Hirsch. He is world-renowned missional leader and the author of The Shaping of Things to Come and The Forgotten Ways.

One of his latest posts is on missional engagement in suburbia. He says:

Clearly mission to the burbs is a major issue for the vast majority of missional minded followers in the West. This is especially true for America where the cities are comprised of what seems to be never-ending suburbia. I have always experienced middle class suburbia as soul-less places, symbolizing consumptive lifestyle, the loss of adventure, and a slow but inevitable death of the spirit. So how do we engage the suburbs?

You can follow the discussion, including some of my comments, on his blog at http://www.theforgottenways.org/blog/index.php/2007/05/14/the-gospel-and-the-god-forsaken/.

The rest of the site has some great resources on missional church. Check it out.

What do you guys see as areas of brokenness in suburbia? Emptiness? Materialism? The Rat Race of Busyness?