The Church is missing out on reaching a whole generation of young people for one simple reason: It’s answering questions Gen Z simply isn’t asking.
That observation comes from Kara Powell, the chief of leadership formation at Fuller Theological Seminary.
According to Powell every teenager is asking, “Who am I? Where do I fit in? What difference can I make?”
Powell said, “Young people are basing their identity on the expectations of others; “So they’re often figuring out who they are based on what others expect.”
She believes young people need to know that they are enough in a world that constantly tells them they are not enough and We want them to know that Jesus makes them enough.
When it comes to belonging, most young people say, “I belong when I feel safe.”
Powell said, “We want young people to know that they experienced their deepest sense of connection with God’s people, with a community that shows them unconditional love, with a group in which they are both giving and receiving and being shaped and shaping.”
Finally, the majority of young people said they find purpose when they are helping others.
She told The Christian Post — “young people were often working so hard to help others that they were ending up burned out, stressed out and too busy. If that purposeful service isn’t grounded in a theology of the Gospel and what it means to be part of God’s Kingdom, then even a motivation to help will eventually fall short.”