192,000 came to Christ through the ministry of Groundwire How did they do it?

Some say that those in the Millennial and Z Generations are impossible to reach. I have been told that they are uninterested in spiritual conversations, and they don’t care about faith, but that is not the reality we at Groundwire are experiencing every day.

In 2021, we saw more than 192,000 young people in the U.S. place their trust in Jesus and invite Him to be their Lord and leader.

We are seeing an openness to Jesus because we have learned how to make Him relevant to their lives. Here are some of the key truths we discovered along the way.

• Crisis is the doorway to have spiritual conversations. Although we want to have theological discussions with them, it is hard to get them engaged. Don’t start with an invasive spiritual discussion. Instead, connect on a real and organic level. “Would you like to have a theological discussion?” rarely sets the table for a comfortable discussion, but “This has been a difficult year. How has that impacted you?” will open the dialogue.

  If you are going to introduce someone to Jesus, there must be a theological discussion. They must understand that God desires a relationship with them, but sin has created a void. They must know that sin comes with a heavy price. One they cannot pay, and that is why God sent Jesus to pay the price, and He offers the forgiveness of sin and peace with God. I am not suggesting we ignore these truths; I am only suggesting it is more effective to connect on the “We are all broken” level than it is to start with “You are a sinner.”

• We do not need to convince them God is real. We need to remind them He is relevant. Seventy-one percent of American Millennials believe God exists, but they are not prioritizing or pursuing Him. Instead of asking “How do I get to Heaven?” they are asking, “How can I get out of the hell that I am currently in?”

  If you want engage with someone in a meaningful conversation, find out what their pain points are and introduce Jesus as the answer.

• If they are lonely, remind them that Jesus will never leave them or abandon them.
• If they crave love, share that God knows them intimately and continues to love them perfectly. He has promised to love them with an unconditional and unending love.
• If they seek purpose, let them know God crafted them intentionally and knows exactly what He put inside of them. He longs to lead and guide them into their calling.
• If they are struggling with heartbreak, share that only He can truly heal their heart.

Once you introduce Jesus into their pain, don’t stop there. Share that He also has the answers for eternity.

• They are tired of the monologue they perceive coming from the church, but they are open to a dialogue. If we do all the talking and never listen, they will run away. But if we ask the right questions, listen to their pain and then respond, they will stay engaged. If we talk at them instead of share with them we will not get very far.

  The key is to let them get the conversation going. What is at the top of their mind? Then, as we listen we can layer Jesus into their challenges, troubles and questions.

• Mobile devices are key. What if you want to engage with the masses? What if you want to scale your efforts to truly impact a community or generation? If you want to grow the impact, you have to approach them digitally.

  The average young person checks their cell phone more than 100 times a day. We can’t get the majority to attend church weekly, but we can’t get them to put down their phones. At Groundwire, we don’t see this as a problem but as an opportunity.

  Everyone speaks to them on their devices (pornographers, politicians, publicists and product pushers) about destructive things. Why shouldn’t we talk to them about things that bring life?

  If you are going to scale any effort, the quickest and most effective way to do that is through their phones.

Groundwire’s strategy to do just that is five-fold:

• Interrupt: Groundwire uses paid advertising and Hollywood-produced content to interrupt the entertainment of our audience, connect with their emotions and suggest Jesus as the answer.
• Communicate: “Chat with someone who understands at…” Our commercials end with the offer to chat with someone. Although there are multiple ways we communicate the Gospel online, the thing that makes us most unique is our team of online volunteers ready to listen, engage and point chatters to Jesus.
• Commit: Although we deal with real pain issues (suicide, depression, anxiety, relational struggles) the goal is to introduce young people to Jesus.
• Educate: We follow up with new believers to help them in their first steps towards Jesus. Our tools help them connect vertically with God and teach them the spiritual disciplines to help them grow spiritually.
• Community: We intentionally target those who are not walking into a church, yet we aim to connect new believers to local community.

Some say that the Millennials and Generation Z can’t be reached. We don’t believe that. If you approach them in the right way with the right messaging, you will discover that they are more open to considering and responding to the claims of Christ than ever before. They are waiting for us to share about the hope, love and kindness of Jesus … and yes, the salvation He offers as well.

We have a job to do.

The Gospel is still powerful, the Harvest is still ripe and Jesus is still recruiting laborers.
Let’s get after it.

To learn more, visit www.Groundwire.net.