RESOURCES TO ACTUALLY REACH THE NEXT GENERATION from Eric Miller, Executive Director of Ministry at Momentum Ministry Partners How do we best navigate the rapidly-changing culture all around us while maintaining a biblical  perspective, winning others for Christ, and raising up the next generation of leaders? At Access Conference 2023, Eric Miller guides a practical conversation about what the church needs to do to actually reach Generation Z, with observations on ministry strategies that seem to be working and those that are not. Below are the notes and resources for that conversation. GEN Z STATS:

  • Born between 1999 and 2015 (8- to 24-year-olds)
  • Gen Z is between 69 & 70 million children & teens, the largest American generation yet.
  • Teens 13-18 years old are twice as likely as adults to say they are atheist (13% vs. 6%). Only three in five identify as Christian, compared to two-thirds of adults (59% vs. 68%).
  • About half of Gen Z is nonwhite. They are the most racially and ethnically diverse generation in American history.
  • Half say happiness is their ultimate goal in life (51%). What does happiness entail? For 43 percent of Gen Z, financial success.
  • More than half of teens use screen media four or more hours per day (57%). One-quarter reports looking at a screen eight or more hours on an average day (26%).
  • One-third reports being bullied online (33%), compared to only one in five adults (20%).
  • The number one profession that Gen Z aspires to have is a social media influencer … a YouTube star … over 50% of them have that as number one (55%) and yet statistically only .01% will actually attain that.

WORDS TO DESCRIBE GEN Z:

  • Overwhelmed
  • Tech-natives
  • YouTube
  • Distracted
  • Diverse
  • Sexually-fluid
  • Justice
  • Post-Christian
  • Entrepreneur

WHAT’S NOT HELPFUL & WHY:

  1. Don’t try too hard.
  2. Don’t overreact.
  3. Don’t prevent them from asking hard questions.
  4. Don’t assume they have spiritual knowledge.
  5. Don’t exclude them from the conversation.

WHAT IS HELPFUL & WHY:

  1. Help them understand their identity.
  2. Help them understand their belonging.
  3. Help them understand their purpose

RESOURCES:

BOOKS/EBOOKS:

  1. Meet Generation Z by James Emery White – HERE
  2. Generation Z Unfiltered by Tim Elmore – HERE
  3. Engaging Generation Z by Tim McKnight – HERE
  4. Faith for Exiles by David Kinsman & Mark Matlock – HERE
  5. iGen by Jean Twenge – HERE
  6. So the Next Generation Will Know by Sean McDowell & J. Warner Wallace – HERE
  7. The Legacy Path by Brian Haynes – HERE
  8. Gen Z, Volumes 1 & 2 by the Barna Group – HERE
  9. Eight Strategies to Build Mentally Tough Kids by Tim Elmore – HERE
  10. Beyond the Spiral by Will Hutcherson & Chinwe Williams – HERE
  11. Seen: Healing Despair & Anxiety in Kids & Teens Through the Power of Connection by Will Hutcherson & Chine Williams – HERE
  12. Navigating Our Digital World by Kara Powell – HERE
  13. Growing With by Kara Powell – HERE
  14. 3 Big Questions That Change Every Teenager by Kara Powell and Brad Griffin – HERE
  15. Embodied by Preston Sprinkle – HERE
  16. Rethinking Sexuality by Juli Slattery – HERE
  17. Chasing Love by Sean McDowell – HERE
  18. Nothing Less: Engaging Kids in a Lifetime of Faith by Jana Magruder, Ben Trueblood – HERE
  19. Master of One by Jordan Raynor – HERE
  20. The Life Giving Leader by Tyler Reagin – HERE

PODCASTS:

  1. The Momentum Ministry Partners Podcast – HERE
  2. Mere Christians Podcast w Jordan Raynor – HERE
  3. Axis Teen Parenting Podcasts – HERE
  4. Think Biblically w Sean McDowell – HERE
  5. Mixed Messages w Jeff Bogue – HERE
  6. Java w Juli Slattery – HERE
  7. Rethinking Youth Ministry by Orange Students – HERE
  8. Youth Ministry Hacks by DYM – HERE
  9. Youth Ministry Sherpas by DYM – HERE
  10. Spoken Gospel – HERE

WEBSITES/VIDEOS/RESOURCES:

  1. Momentum PRO+ Student Ministry Resources – HERE
  2. The Culture Translator by Axis.org – HERE
  3. Parent Guides by Axis.org – HERE
  4. Why Gen Z is Much Different from Previous Generations by Ken Ham – HERE
  5. How to Reach Gen Z with the Gospel of Jesus by Ruslan and Gabe Poirot – HERE
  6. Jordan Raynor – Developing a Missional Marketplace Mindset – HERE
  7. Download Youth Ministry Facebook Community – HERE
  8. Stuff You Can Use: Youth Ministry Facebook Community – HERE