The Great Awakening Among Teenagers and Young People: A Hopeful Vision for Revival.
When speaking in GERAKAN BERTEKUN program, the Holy Spirit made me aware that the emergence of Generation Z that is widely known as the Strawberry Generation is actually part of the work of the Evil spirits who take advantage of technological advances among people who are childish or immature in responding to the change of times.
It is beyond doubt, through existing technological advances, there are so many positive things that we can enjoy. Although on the other hand it still provides bad excess for those who are unable to respond to technological advances that resulted in changes in their lifestyle and habits.
Well, this change in lifestyle and habits in the digital era that is used by the Evil One to build a ‘womb’ for the birth of the Strawberry Generation. Not to mention the widespread of ‘Post Truth’ in the world of social media where people are conditioned to choose or even create ‘truth’ according to their own version!
So Generation Z is being designed by the Evil One to be a generation that lives ‘outside’ the absolute truth of the Word. That’s why Generation Z is known as a group of people who share the same characteristics: thin-skinned, rejecting things that are heavy or full of challenges or require tenacity, again and again needs ‘healing’ and tends to only want to do things that are light but wants to be successful quickly.
Compare this with the conditions in the book of Genesis 6:5, which states that at that time, human tendencies always produced evil, people tended to do whatever they thought was right (read: pleases them), there was no absolute truth (Post -Truth).
But regardless of the conditions and circumstances there are, I believe that God still has young people who live to please His heart! At that time, God still found Noah who lived righteously and did not follow the lifestyle or habits of the people of his era (Genesis 6:8-9). On the other hand, Noah actually lived intimately with God!
I believe for those of us who are involved in youth or teens ministry, don’t use worldly ways to attract attention or to grow youth ministry in our church! Because what we need is to ensure that these teenagers or young people experience life changes foundationally, not just hanging out in church!
Then the Holy Spirit confirms the importance of growing the ministry of youth or teens through intercession and war prayer! Fighting all the activities of the Evil One who have already become a lifestyle or habit until blocking the eyes of their hearts that they cannot ’see’ the bright light of glory that the Father has provided in Him!
Most of these teenagers or young people find that their ‘need for God’ in their life seems to have been buried! What they are after is personal pleasure, a life that is ‘fun and easy’ – that is the mirage instilled by the Evil One through worldly lifestyles, hedonism and flexing that are widely exposed through social media which seem to keeps on ‘preaching’ in their lives.
This is the time for us as God’s servants to start praying and conducting spiritual warfare for this generation. Let from this generation be born young people who love God desperately, frantically and all out! Maybe there weren’t many at first, but this is the group of pioneers that God raised up. Just be consistent!
I believe that there are still many teenagers or young people out there who have an inclination of heart to pursue the reality of God. It’s just that they haven’t met or never heard of us. Sooner or later, our consistency in living with God will reach their lives.
That’s when they must rush to get closer to what God is doing through our lives! The momentum is definitely happening!
A spark of fire might easily be extinguished, but when a spark starts to become a bonfire, then there will be a lot of people gathered around the bonfire! The more wood we throw into the bonfire, the fire will surely grow bigger. When the momentum happens and we continue to maintain it, then the momentum will roll into a movement!
This movement will quickly mutate into a great spiritual movement – the great awakening among teenagers or young people! Wow… my heart is burning with hope, we are really at the end of a great revival! Amen.
Ps. Steven Agustinus
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