2021 November

Looking into the Future

When God called us to begin the ABBA youth ministry in Peru, He first showed us churches we were working with through the Children of Jesus ministry that were filled with children and yet had a nearly nonexistent presence of youth and young adults. As we prayed about why this was, God opened our eyes to see how they were getting lost in the world, falling into the temptation of easy money as they entered into adolescence through things like prostitution and drug dealing. Through this revelation, God showed us that He wanted to use us to share His heart, the heart of ABBA Father, with them – that nothing in the world could ever satisfy them like His love for them and that He had a great plan and purpose He wanted to fulfill in each and every one of their lives. So, we prayed and asked God, “How can the youth of Peru come to know your heart towards them, Father?” And as always, He answered. A couple of years following the start of ABBA ministry, Holy Spirit inspired us to develop a devotional that would help the next generation encounter the living God. The truth of who He is and what His heart contains, which would help them stand firm in the midst of the world’s never-ending attempts of allurement, could only be personally revealed to them as they spend time in His living Word. Thus, the name of the devotional came to be titled “Encuentro con Abba Padre-ECAP” or “Encounter with Abba Father”. The ABBA ECAP is an amalgamation of the time and effort of writers, editors, and designers from all across North and South America. The beautifully-made devotional book contains well-written and profound insights into the Word of God that fosters great spiritual growth in all of its readers. It is interlaced with monthly Bible reading schedules and special colored pages spread throughout that are dedicated towards the designated theme for each edition. In recent years, Holy Spirit has led us to focus on themes about standing firm on the truth: putting on the Armor of God and differentiating between the lies of this world and the truth found in God’s promises. For 2022, our prayer and aim is that they are reminded that despite the ways the world presents to finding fulfillment in this life, Jesus is the only way to true purpose in this life and in eternity. ECAP is a tool God has been using to help establish their identity in Him and come to know Him in an intimate and real way, so they become transformed into mighty men and women of God. But God is now pressing on our hearts that this is a need for not just the Peruvian youth, but the youth in our very own country. Though the temptations and struggles come in different forms, God’s heart towards the next generation remains the same. God is showing us that He desires to and has already started working in the next generation here in our own backyard. We are invited by Abba Father to join Him in His work to raise the next generation. Will you join us in crying-out for the next generation to become mighty men and women of God’s army who will expand His fire to all nations until He returns? Let’s look forward to a future where the next generation will go against all odds and stand firm in the truth.

Where’s Our Next Generation?

I remember a little rhyme I learned and recited as a child while doing the hand motions that went along with it. “Here is the church. Here is the steeple. Open the doors and see all the people.” During the pandemic, we were no longer able to “see all the people.” Even as the country slowly returns to a form of normalcy, we are now presented with the question, “where are all the people?” Churches all over the world, including the US, have experienced a loss. And this is not only in the number of people gathering to worship. Many churches had to close their doors for good. But the sad truth is that this was a reality even before the pandemic. In 2014, an estimated 4,000 Protestant churches were planted, while 3,700 closed in a year according to Lifeway Research. In 2019, approximately 3,000 Protestant churches were started in the U.S., but 4,500 closed. Currently, more churches are closing than being started. A Barna Group study reported that non-practicing Christians have grown from 35% to 43% from 2000 to 2020. During the same time, practicing Christians declined from 45% to 25%. Practicing Christians were identified as those who strongly agree that faith is very important in their lives and have attended church within the past month. The term, non-practicing Christians, is interesting as this is incredibly self-contradictory. Can one be a Christian without practicing one’s faith? Yet, we see there are those who don’t seem to find this a contradiction. Of greater concern, however, is that the church is losing its future, the next generation – the Millennials, who were born between the early 80s and mid to late 90s, and Gen Z, who were born between the mid to late 90s to early-mid 2000s. According to another study done by the Barna Group in 2019, over 60% of young people raised in the church leave it before adulthood. According to the Pew Research Center study in 2018 and 2019, only half of Millennials (49%) describe themselves as Christians. While this may not seem like an alarming or surprising statistic at face value, when you look more closely at the further breakout of this number, only 2 out of 10 of those who profess to be Christians regularly attend church (Chart 1). There have been fewer surveys conducted with the Gen Z generation as most were not yet 18+, but we don’t expect the statistics to be more optimistic. Data from Barna Group surveys from 2016-2018 showed that in terms of priorities for the future, most, including churched Christians, prioritize either their personal interests or money. This is our reality. Our next generation is becoming unchurched before our very own eyes, no different from the world. Though attendance does not directly translate to one’s personal relationship with God, it is a valid indicator that makes us question how many of those who profess to be Christians are living as true disciples of Christ. In addition, worldly ones are becoming prioritized and replacing biblical ones. The forecast for the future of the church seems bleak. But it doesn’t have to remain this way. There is always hope in Jesus. Let us intercede for Holy Spirit fire to fall afresh on our next generation so they will be transformed into a mighty one that is no longer lost to the world but claims their identity as children of God and lives boldly for the name and kingdom of Jesus.