God is on the move – but are you prepared to share good news?

As reports indicate Gen Z people are less likely to identify as atheists and Bible sales soar, Phil Knox unpacks the data.

If you’ve been praying for the rains of revival to fall, you might be encouraged to hear the pitter-patter of rain drops. In the last few months several pieces of research and news articles have caught my attention.

First, The Independent reported that Gen Z were half as likely to identify as atheists as their parents. Then, The Times told us that Bible sales were up 87 per cent over the last six years. Following that, a Savanta study found that 29 per cent of all UK students read the Bible weekly, while YouGov reported that the church had grown by two million in six years, led by extraordinary numbers of young adults.

And as the Evangelical Alliance, we also conducted some research where we asked almost 300 new adult Christians about their journeys to faith. The report is profoundly encouraging, fascinating and packed with story after story of transformation and hope. Here’s what we found:

Compassion ministries

When we asked participants what prompted them to explore the Christian faith, 37 per cent said they needed help with life. This was the top answer. These are likely those coming to our toddler groups, food banks, rehabilitation ministries or anything else that meets a felt human need. Let’s make sure everyone who engages is invited to take the next step and hear the good news.

Equip every believer

When we asked participants who had helped along the journey, the top answers were ‘a person or people from church (35 per cent)’, ‘a close friend (33 per cent)’ and ‘a small group of Christians (28 per cent)’. People repeatedly particularly mentioned that friends gave them time, patient discussion, hospitality and demonstrated an authentic example.

Evangelism is a team game. It is too important and too big a task to be left to the professionals. Let’s make disciples that make disciples.

Unleash the Word

Perhaps we should not be surprised, but the Bible is playing a prominent role in conversion. As people explore faith, 47 per cent say that reading the Bible was significant for them. Then we asked what finally prompted people to decide to follow Jesus. The second top answer was ‘Reading the Bible’. May this cause us to renew our confidence in God’s Word, give out gospels and invite not-yet Christians to read the Bible with us.

Be prepared

Twenty-eight per cent said a spiritual experience had prompted them to explore faith and a whopping 39 per cent (the top answer) said it was an experience of God that finally prompted them to make the decision to follow Jesus. There seems to be a dramatic increase in people encountering Jesus in dreams and other experiences. Our churches need to be ready to welcome and receive them.

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.