On his cross-country Lead the Way Tour, Ed Stetzer shares insights on the State of the Church, Gen Z and the future of the gospel.

In the 18th century Great Britain experienced a religious awakening called the Evangelical Revival, which paralleled the First Great Awakening in America. Key to the British movement was the itinerant preaching and organizational proclivity of John Wesley. Wesley spent so much time on horseback traveling across England to proclaim the gospel that J.E. Rattenbury dubbed him “the evangelical centaur” (A. Skevington Wood, John Wesley: The Burning Heart).

Following his example, the Second Great Awakening in America a generation later was marked by circuit riding Method-ist preachers following Wesley’s model. The equestrian itinerants played a pivotal role in evangelizing the masses and establishing churches. These circuit riders faced arduous conditions and sacrificed greatly for the gospel. In fact, Christian History notes that half of these mostly younger circuit riders died before age 33 (“Camp Meetings and Circuit Riders”).

Fast forward to 2025 and you have our modernized approach to itinerant work we call the “Lead the Way Tour.” Now, let’s be clear: our team travels by a Bible-branded sprinter van (pictured) rather than by horseback. Our trek crisscrossed from Seattle down to Houston, but that is a far cry from the lonely campfires and weary horses from days gone by. But the spirit is the same: to get on the road to encourage churches and church leaders for the sake of the gospel.

Our tour started in January in Yorba Linda, California, with a PCA presbytery — Talbot professor Darian Lockett is a PCA teaching elder, and it was a joy to see him.

We’ve been to Honolulu, back to Riverside, over to Phoenix, south to Mexico, back to several stops in California, and as far east as Orlando to present at Exponential, to name just some of the stops.

And, probably to your surprise, I am literally writing this in the van as I am sleeping in South San Francisco preparing for our Lead the Way Tour stop there tomorrow. It’s a sold-out event, and I love that God is on the move in the Bay Area.

At each stop I share important content to help them move forward on mission. Featured at each stop was brand new “State of the Church” research from Barna Group and Gloo, along with perspectives on how to minister in a timely way in 2025 with the timeless gospel of Jesus. As we connected with pastors and ministry leaders we also offered free resources and taught key insights on dealing with cultural issues in a biblical way.

Current Trends: Nones and Christian Identity

On the tour we identified two significant trends impacting church life today. The first is the widely noted rise of the nones, or the religiously unaffiliated. The rise shifted to a steep increase from the 1980s to today, with one exception: just recently (2022–2023) the first real drop in the percentage of nones in 30 years was observed, from 31% of the population to 28%. It’s too early to see if this is a new trend, but the increasing numbers of nones — especially among the younger population — is important.

The second trend is the decline of those in the U.S. who self-identify as Christian. This is also seen more clearly in younger adults. This gravitational pull toward identifying more as unaffiliated in terms of religion coupled with fewer who call themselves Christians presents a critical challenge for the church. More ominous is the decline in the number of Americans who say their religious faith is very important. This reflects a general spiritual drift among professing believers.

The numbers are more than numbers; they reflect people, all of whom matter to God. The status quo will not move us out of this trend any more than switching from watching golf to watching tennis on TV will help us get in shape. The American church must shift to a missionary posture in our post-Christian era.

The 2020 Meteor

The year 2020 will be remembered as the year of the pandemic. Covid-19 throttled the nation and affected the church. Religious changes since that year include the shift among Gen Z where more men than women are attending church. Barna discovered that Gen Z young men are “motivated to learn more about Jesus.” Additionally, the Wall Street Journal reported a sharp rise in Bible sales “fueled by first-time buyers.” A shift impacting churches as well is the rising number of churchgoers who more quickly and more often switch congregations.

Add to that the gravitational pull of secularism that continues to separate values in culture from values in the church, and you can see the importance of churches reigniting to advance the light of the gospel in an increasingly dark world.

Responding to the Changing and Disruptive Times

It’s understandable and even right for us to mourn the rise of secularism and decline of Christian influence in our time. We have in many ways lost the home-field advantage. But setbacks set the stage for comebacks.

Here’s some good news. First, our sovereign God is not surprised. Second, we have the end of the story and Jesus wins! Here are four major changes since 2020 that inform us of ways to act.

  1. Gen Z men are returning to church at higher rates.
  2. Gen Z teens are more spiritually open than ever.
  3. The 30-year rise of the “nones” has plateaued.
  4. Bible engagement and sales are up.

These trends demonstrate the reality that we are in a time of disruption. We can see this as another set of challenges to overcome or face the future with the conviction that God is giving us an opportunity to step into this space with the hope of the gospel. God’s Word Gives us wise counsel as to facing our time. We read in Acts how the early church faced far greater disruption than us. Their very lives were at stake as persecution grew, but the gospel continued to flourish.

One of the most glaring features of rapid cultural change is the role of younger generations. We see this again and again. For example, the young man standing boldly in front of tanks in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on June 5, 1989, was called one of the most iconic moments in the 20th century. Students played a role in overturning Communism in Romania, the Czech Republic, and other places.

Jonathan Edwards observed the role of youth in the First Great Awakening:

The work has been chiefly amongst the young; and comparatively but few others have been made partakers of it. And indeed it has commonly been so, when God has begun any great work for the revival of his church; he has taken the young people, and has cast off the old and stiff-necked generation (Thoughts on Revival and Religion of New England).

We can see the role of youth in the Haystack Revival and the birth of modern missions in the U.S., the Student Volunteer Movement, and more recently, the Jesus People Movement. We hear testimonies of spiritual movements on college campuses today. Barna found that Gen Z teens are more spiritually open today than any time in recent years. Could Gen Z be key to a resurgence in the American church?

In his first New York Times bestseller The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell defines a tipping point as “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point” when sudden and dramatic change takes place. This could be an epidemic, like March 2020, or the Reformation when Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door. We can be encouraged by Gladwell’s subtitle, How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. If the American church can reframe its vision to the heart of our faith, showing and sharing the good news passionately, caring for the broken faithfully, and loving one another fervently, then we will see the renewal we need and seek.

Follow Along. Ed Stetzer’s Lead the Way Tour has taken him to churches in California, Florida, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Texas and beyond, with more events on the way. Learn more about the tour, explore the research and find resources at biola.edu/leadtheway.