A fascinating phenomenon is happening in a small Kentucky town, on a fairly unheralded college campus. It\u2019s spreading. And increasingly attracting the attention of massive others. People are driving to\u2026 flying in\u2026 all ages and ethnicities\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From NBC:<\/em> \u201cA Christian service at a college chapel in Kentucky has ballooned into a nonstop prayer and worship session that some are calling a \u2018revival\u2019 \u2014 and people are traveling thousands of miles to take part in it after seeing viral videos on TikTok.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n From CBS:<\/em> \u201cThousands of people are flooding to Wilmore, Kentucky, to attend an ongoing chapel service. But what started in Kentucky has now made its way to Lee University.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n [\u2026 to Tennessee, Illinois, Ohio, Alabama and more\u2026]<\/p>\n\n\n\n From ABC:<\/em> \u201cIt’s something that people are live streaming. It’s something we see posted about on social media. And I think that this is the beginning of unity like we’ve never seen before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following their regular weekly chapel service at Asbury University a week ago Wednesday \u2014 in a service described as \u201cordinary\u201d and \u201cunremarkable\u201d \u2014 students stuck around. They began to share, pray, and worship. More ventured in. They spontaneously stayed; they were spontaneously stirred. They began to confess, repent, and encourage one another in that confession and repentance. Bottom line: they were intentionally seeking God together. And they continue still today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, something unique is happening. And let it be lost on no one that it started in one of our youngest generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In my observations, interactions and study of Gen Z, one of the things I deeply admire is their collective craving for authenticity. It\u2019s important to stand for something meaningful \u2014 to be true to themselves \u2014 and to be consistent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, they haven\u2019t always witnessed such in we adults who\u2019ve gone before them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They\u2019ve sadly grown up in these recent decades of rampant, polarizing disunity, value digression and cultural confusion. They\u2019ve grown into adulthood watching supposedly mature adults have no idea how to handle disagreement. They\u2019ve seen us act as if it\u2019s ok to selectively love your neighbor, like it depends on who your neighbor is. They\u2019ve seen us justify judgment, unkindness and absurdity. We can\u2019t continue like this. It\u2019s a totally unsustainable path. We need a solution. That solution will not be found in any person or politics. And Gen Z knows this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m not sure Gen Z has always known how to articulate what they\u2019ve experienced; geepers \u2014 I<\/em><\/strong> don\u2019t always know how to articulate such. So as we resist stereotyping all into groupthink, I have no doubt Gen Z has witnessed an inauthenticity that\u2019s preceded them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Which leads us back to Asbury, Kentucky, and the students who lingered\u2026 and the masses that have grown. They want something more. No people. No politics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And so they bowed. They bowed, visibly demonstrating a posture of reverence and humility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s be honest; it hasn\u2019t been all that cool lately for 20-something\u2019s to openly seek God \u2014 to give Him credit or praise Him out loud\u2026 that is, unless you\u2019re standing on a Super Bowl sideline. And yet it\u2019s amazing what happens when we do\u2026 when we recognize human hands are incapable of solution for the unsustainable paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The college kids have thus been teaching us by seeking God in earnest. In a posture of humility. With zero condemnation. I think that\u2019s beautiful. I think we adults have much to learn. Again, imperfect as we are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s go one more step here today. Let us acknowledge that this may well be a difficult phenomenon to understand for some. God gets that. He has sweet patience with the skeptic (remember the origin of a \u201cdoubting Thomas\u201d??). <\/em>But let\u2019s be real, friends; there is a clear difference between healthy skepticism versus condemnation veiled as thoughtful critique. We tend to criticize what we don\u2019t understand; we stunt our own growth. Sometimes we\u2019re even critical of a childlike faith, dismissing the beauty\u2026 or in this case, the beauty within Gen Z.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We need divine discernment. We can\u2019t know all things without it. We all need to learn to crave that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I think those 20-something\u2019s know that, too. I think that\u2019s why they\u2019ve craved for more. May we thus learn from them \u2014 from their absolute beautiful posture of both reverence and humility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A fascinating phenomenon is happening in a small Kentucky town, on a fairly unheralded college campus. It\u2019s spreading. And increasingly attracting the attention of massive others. People are driving to\u2026 flying in\u2026 all ages and ethnicities\u2026 From NBC: \u201cA Christian service at a college chapel in Kentucky has ballooned into a nonstop prayer and worship … <\/p>\n