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| Pastor Greg Laurie speaking at SoCal Harvest in Anaheim, California, on Aug. 23, 2019 |
Millennials, Gen Zers showing greater interest in Gospel amid
COVID-19 pandemic, Greg Laurie says
A
Great Awakening is at hand
By
Brandon Showalter, CP Reporter
A megachurch pastor whose Palm Sunday service
was watched online by President Trump says that amid the COVID-19 pandemic an
increasing number of young people are starting to embrace the Gospel.
Due to the public health crisis that's
besetting the United States and other nations around the world, many churches
have been livestreaming their services online as large physical gatherings are
temporarily halted due to government-issued social distancing orders.
But the move to digital means of worship
might portend a Great Awakening, according to Greg Laurie, the longtime pastor
of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, who wrote in an op-ed
published in Newsweek on Tuesday that he and his team were pleasantly surprised
to see that their first week of shifting services to online-only drew over
250,000 viewers and has been growing ever since.
"Last week, we
had over a million people tune in for church. These are people literally from
all around the world, from every age and background, who are missing church.
“So, to the best of
our ability, we are bringing church to them.
“What’s more,
hundreds of thousands of them are people whom marketers would refer to as the
'target demographic' between the ages of 18 and 34."
Ever since the shutdown began, viewership
among millennials has increased 235%, he said.
Churches have been attempting to reach
younger generations with the Gospel for decades, seemingly in vain, Laurie
elaborated, highlighting the plethora of news stories and surveys in recent
years about declining church attendance and the rise of the "nones" —
those who never have or no longer affiliate with any particular religious
tradition.
But the worldwide coronavirus outbreak has
fundamentally changed the environment.
"Could it be
that simply by responding as best and as quickly as we could to something no one
saw coming, we’ve unwittingly stumbled into part of God’s answer to a
generational riddle?" he asked.
"We touch our
phones a shocking 2,617 times a day, and 84 percent say they can’t go a single
day without their phone. Most people under 30 can’t even remember a world
before cell phones.
“Perhaps this is why
some psychologists refer to millennials as 'Generation Panic.' They have been
so inundated by a world of unrealistic comparisons and 'excessive expectations'
online that they are afflicted by 'a harsh inner critic and an obsessive need
to achieve.'"
A millennial friend reportedly told Laurie
that he believes it only makes sense that God would bring revival through
laptops and phones now and that he had an encounter with God while watching a
broadcast in the privacy of his home with no one watching and no pressure to
behave or perform.
"But here is the
most surprising thing to me about this new, burgeoning online congregation. At
the end of my message, I extended an opportunity for people to pray and ask
Jesus Christ to come into their lives. At last count, over 31,000 have
responded. That’s in four weeks," Laurie said.
"You’ve heard of
'life imitating art.' Well, this is virtual reality becoming actual
reality."
Laurie went on to note that while his
congregation is looking forward to gathering physically again they are
presently seeing something which looks like a great awakening as they continue
to shelter-in-place.
"Let’s hope and
pray that it continues. America is long overdue," Laurie concluded.
The president announced at the end of the
April 4 White House Coronavirus Task Force press briefing that he would be
watching Laurie's Palm Sunday service.
Later that day, Trump also tweeted that he
would be watching the livestream. In an April 6 tweet, Laurie thanked the
president for joining and noted that approximately 1.3 million tuned in to the
service and that 11,207 people indicated a desire to know Christ.
Brandon
Showalter is
a reporter with The Christian Post. He enjoys exploring the intersection of
faith and public life, and has reported on a wide range of theological,
political and ethical themes and topics.
He
was first inspired to break into a career in writing/journalism while mopping
floors and scrubbing toilets as a church custodian in April 2015.
He
earned a B.A. from Bridgewater College of Virginia, is a fellow of the John Jay
Institute for Faith, Society, & Law, and graduated from a three-year
program at Bethel School of Ministry in Redding, California.
His
most favorite thing to do in life is to sing.
https://www.christianpost.com/news/millennials-gen-zers-showing-greater-interest-in-gospel-amid-covid-19-pandemic-greg-laurie-says.html
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