Billy Graham’s message about how to achieve peace with God wouldn’t go very far with Millennials or Gen Zs today. Why? Because they aren’t looking for peace with God; they’re just looking for peace, period, says Sean Dunn, founder of the evangelistic organization Groundwire.

But there’s good news: The God they aren’t looking for is still looking for them — and through Groundwire’s sharing the Good News on social media, more than half a million of them gave their lives to Him last year.

Dunn established Champion Ministries, Inc. in 1995, preaching to 150,000 each year from a stage. He then began using traditional media (TV, radio, and billboards) in 2003 to spread the Gospel. The ministry went 100% digital in 2017 and began growing rapidly.

Dunn spoke with The Stream recently to talk about the fire that is bringing huge numbers of young people to Christ, and how older people can get involved.

The Stream: What is the key you’ve discovered to reach Millennials and Gen Zs with the Gospel?

Sean Dunn: We’ve learned that you have to meet them in their crisis to talk to them about Christ because they won’t take time [otherwise]. If you flag them down, if you give them two [choices], ‘Hey, come talk to us about your pain,’ or ‘Come talk to us about theological issues,’ they’re going to go to the pain every time. They’re going to talk about what they’re struggling with. But we know that Christ answers those questions. We know that whether it’s purpose, hope, peace, joy, whether it’s love and acceptance [that they need], all of those things come through Christ, as does the eternal aspect. So, that’s really where you start. The doorway is really through the deeply spiritual, but the deeply personal.

TS: And how is that different than in years past? I’m a Gen Xer. How would you approach them differently than you would me?

SD: If you rewind to when we were 17 to 25, it was easier to get our attention. It was easier to entertain us and then slip Jesus in. And now a 17- or 19-year-old is feeling more overwhelmed. Statistics say that 46% of Gen Zs feel anxious or depressed most of the time.

For our generation, the average person, we went through difficult times, [but this generation] feels like that proverbial cloud follows them. We’ve all heard the phrase “seeker sensitive” — as in seeker-sensitive churches and ministry models. The younger generations aren’t seeking, whereas we did want to.

When you were growing up, you had your Christian and your atheist and then you had this middle group that many people called agnostic who said, “I don’t know what I believe, but I’ve got to figure it out.”

Today you’ve got your Christian, you’ve got your atheist, and you’ve got what the Urban Dictionary calls the apatheist — a young person who believes in God but ignores Him. So they’re not saying, “I don’t know what I believe, but I’ve got to figure it out.” They’re saying, “I don’t know what I believe and I’m okay with that.” It’s just not as much of a priority.

So that’s a very, very distinctive characteristic of the younger generations. But when we were 15 to 20, 25 years old, there was a little more desire in us to get those questions answered.

TS: Do you think the difference has to do with social media or technology? What has changed?

SD: Social media has shifted. I saw a [1991-2023] study of eighth-, tenth-, and twelfth-graders. It asked them three quality-of-life questions like, ‘Are you happy? Do you find purpose in life?’ Eighteen percent of them answered negatively. In 2023, it was 52%. [That rate] climbed steadily until 2008, 2010, and then it started to really climb. Social media was pushed on it. 2020 [COVID] exacerbated it even more. I think that the tearing down of the institutions, whether it be family, whether it be church, whether it be government, definitely plays a part.

The younger generations don’t trust authority. Only 26% of Gen Zs trust pastors to do the right thing. So they drive past our churches and they think, I can’t trust them.

There are a lot of elements. I wish it was an easy answer. I don’t know that I have it.

TS: How do we reach Gen Zs and Millennials for Christ?

SD: You’ve got to go fishing where they are. When I was building the ministry, I was speaking to 150,000 people a year. I realized it was built around an invitation. I’m asking them to come where they don’t want to be. Seventy percent [of Gen Z and Millennials] believe the American church is irrelevant. The Scriptures say to go. And I kept saying, ‘Come.’ 

We know where they are. They’re staring at their small phones. I think you connect with them where they are. And then you help them ask the questions they should be asking.

Their attitude is, ‘I believe in God, He just doesn’t mean anything to me.’ We don’t need to convince them He’s real. We need to remind them that He’s relevant. He becomes relevant when He helps them understand they’re never alone. [He becomes relevant] when they understand He created them on purpose and He knows the best direction for their life.

When you connect Christ with those felt needs, then they’re willing to listen.

There’s a difference between saying, ‘You need Jesus,’ and saying, ‘Hey, after hearing what’s going on in your life, I really think what you’re searching for is Jesus. Can we talk about that?’

TS: What do you understand about leading young people to Christ that our readers don’t know yet?

SD: Number one, I think when I do training with pastors, they’re very surprised that the average young person believes in God. You’re not going to offend them when you begin the conversation with them about God.

I think another thing people are surprised at is [young people’s] negative view of church. The goal is not to get them into church. The goal is to introduce them to Jesus, then move them into community.

TS: What are your thoughts on the campus revivals where young people are coming to Christ? 

SD: I think it shows there’s a hunger. The Scripture that I go to is Matthew 9:36–38. It’s really a three-part passage. Jesus said people were helpless like sheep without a shepherd. He had compassion, because when Jesus looked at culture, He said men are mess.

When you look at our culture right now, I think that’s a good way to describe it — harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. [Young people] don’t know who to trust. They don’t know which religion is telling the truth. They don’t know which political party is telling the truth. They don’t know if they trust their parents anymore.

The very next thing He said is the harvest is ripe. When you find culture to be a mess, harassed and helpless without a shepherd, the assumption is the harvest is ripe.

They’re open to the Gospel. I think that’s what’s going on. I think there is this massive move of people waking up in the morning saying, ‘Man, the rug has been ripped out from under me. I don’t know what my future is going to look like. I have no security, I have no stability.’ They’re looking for something to trust. That’s why Jesus is so attractive.

The third part of that is something that I find fascinating, too. The harvest is ripe. The next thing that Jesus said is, ‘Pray to the Lord of the harvest, because the harvest is ripe, but the laborers are few.’

I’ve wrestled with that passage before because if that’s true, it flips the Christians’ paradigm on its head. That means we’re not waiting for them; they’re waiting for us. We sit behind our church walls and we think, ‘If they have questions, surely they’ll walk through the door. On Sunday morning, they’ll ask.’

And they sit on the other side of the street and they say, ‘If you have answers, surely you’ll come tell me.’ And nobody’s crossing the street.

People are more open to the Gospel right now, to considering and responding to the claims of Christ right now, than ever since I’ve been alive, and I think in the history of our nation. That’s why I think we’re seeing what we’re seeing.

TS: How does this relate to the Billion Soul Harvest?

SD: We see a great opportunity because we know more than ever before how to get people’s attention through their phones. A church in a community might have access to 20% of the populace if it’s a very significant, very, very unique church. But we can get to 98% of people right through that device. We’re going to continue to do that and find the right messaging that gets their attention and then draws them into a conversation.

TS: How can people of every age group be more effective in sharing the Gospel with their lost friends and acquaintances?

SD: I have a talk that I do called “Four Assumptions.” These four assumptions help me have spiritual conversations every day. And they’re just very simple. First, people respond to kindness. That sounds so basic, but Christians don’t have a reputation of being kind. When we’re kind, they respond to that.

Second, they will respond to questions. If they’re heard, they’ll listen. Ask a question and be quiet. You can start with generic questions like, ‘Tell me something interesting about yourself.’ But you can also go to, ‘Tell me about your faith background.’ Or if you’re talking to somebody who’s struggling: ‘Where do you go to find hope in that moment?’ Ask questions.

Third, I make the assumption that they believe in God. That’s a good open door to them.

Fourth, I make the assumption that they will let me pray for them. I’ll say, ‘Hey, could I pray for you?’ Probably 80% of the people say, ‘Yes, you can do it.’ Twenty percent say, ‘That’s great, just do it on the way home.’ They’re embarrassed by that process.

But very rarely do I have anybody say, ‘Don’t pray for me.’ Maybe 1% of the time. When you take time and have a conversation with somebody, it’s really meaningful to people.

TS: How many young people have come to Christ through Groundwire over the last year? 

SD: Last year we saw 567,545 people profess faith.

TS: How does Groundwire follow up with young people?

SD: We offer them ‘growth tracks’ where they can choose to have someone walk with them for the first several weeks of their spiritual journey, incorporate content, or engage in the online community to go deeper. The goal is to see 30% take a meaningful and measured step [in their faith]. Right now, we are around 22% who are doing something to go deeper.

TS: Is there anything else you’d like to share?

SD: Christians need to understand that the youth are interested. They just have to be approached with kindness and compassion, and they need to be heard.

God is on the move, the Harvest is ripe. Exciting times! Say a prayer of celebration and thanks and ask God to continue to draw hearts through the Holy Spirit!

 

Nancy Flory, Ph.D., is a senior editor at The Stream. You can follow her @NancyFlory3, and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.