They arrived on history’s stage in a roaring tempest. A season of swirling convergence of technology, social upheaval, global terrorism and existential uncertainty. Yet the young men and women of “Generation Z” are not victims of chaos but its heirs—forged, tested and prepared to navigate its winds. Early in their lives they have claimed territory for the cause of Christ in a way not seen since the Jesus Movement half a century ago, first in the Asbury Revival two years ago, and in widening waves since Asbury at Ohio State, Texas A&M, and Oklahoma among many. Gen Z presents as much a cautionary tale as luminous promise.
Born into the relentless cadence of the digital age, Gen Z has never known a world without smartphones, social networks and global connectivity. They scroll through algorithms that shape their thoughts as much as their friendships; the digital ether is both their playground and their battlefield. Yet behind curated profiles, there is often unease; the weight of comparison, the hum of anxiety, a subtle erosion of privacy.
Challenges are not confined to the virtual. They are coming of age in the aftermath of recessions, pandemic and polarization. The old promises of upward mobility ring hollow to many, replaced by soaring tuition fees and precarious job markets. Unlike their predecessors, they are not sheltered from the world’s crises—they are baptized by them.
There is ingenuity in their adaptability, fluent in technology since birth in a way that transcends mere competence and becomes a creative force. They are coders and creators, activists and entrepreneurs and they carry within them a DIY ethic reminiscent of their Gen X parents. Financially prudent beyond their years, they invest early, hustle through side gigs and question the orthodoxies of nine-to-five careers and institutions that once seemed untouchable. Their political instincts are sharp because they are pragmatists who understand that survival demands change.
Their sense of justice is no less striking. Prior generations may have marched with banners, Gen Z organizes with hashtags. Theirs is an activism that lives in both the street and the feed. Last month, a group of Gen Z leaders crafted a first of its kind “Digital Bill of Rights,” seeking to envision the interconnected future redressing the negative experiences they’ve known most of their lives.
Beneath their activism and innovation, there is vulnerability. No generation has spoken more openly about their mental health struggles—and none has been more burdened by them. Anxiety is both their shadow and their muse; it propels their drive even as it erodes their peace. They are perhaps too aware of the magnitude of challenges before them. Yet hope is not mere sentiment for Generation Z—it is a choice, often fought for and found in something greater than themselves. Many in this generation are quietly returning to, or discovering for the first time, the enduring hope found in Jesus Christ, the powerful authenticity in the Holy Spirit. They find in His example a vision of justice not driven by rage but grace, in a mission that goes beyond self-expression into service. Where the world offers fleeting answers, faith offers an enduring foundation—a compass when the storms are fiercest. And by the Holy Spirit, guidance is personal, accessible, real, ready and omnipresent.
Dr. Billy Wilson, Oral Robert president, says Gen Z are not just survivors but catalysts—a generation whose hardships are not evidence of their ruin but proof of their preparation. If history has taught us anything, Wilson says, generations are defined less by the challenges they face and more by the character they reveal in confronting them, drawing from the wisdom of Scripture to remind us that storms do not destroy the faithful; they reveal them.
Wilson sees an ethic of empowerment, a generation not born into ease but into destiny. Their struggles are not anomalies, but assignments. Gen Z chooses to see chaos not as curse but as crucible—a pivot portal through which character, conviction and calling are refined. Their greatest strength will not come from their innovation alone but from the One who created them for this very moment energized in Holy Spirit power.
The story of Generation Z is raw and early, but if history is any guide it is precisely from a season of uncertainty the greatest leaders emerge. We should not patronize them with shallow affirmations nor dismiss their anxieties. Let’s sow into them abundantly, investing the Good News of the Gospel into their revivals, honor their courage and clearing paths they inevitably will forge for themselves. As Oral Roberts’ Wilson says, we should remind them that they are not victims of the storm—they are its answer because history is not written by those who weather storms, but by those who harness them.
And the surest anchor in the storm is the One who has held firm across every age, the hope and cause of Christ.
Lawrence Tate is a contributor to Charisma Media. Dr. Billy Wilson’s recent book, Generation Z: Born for the Storm, is available on amazon.com.
