What do Gen Z and Gen Alpha think about Jesus? Youth Ministry in 2025

How are young people, especially Gen Z and Gen Alpha, connecting with Jesus? It’s a big question, right? 

Currently, only about 2% of young people are regularly in church. A marginal decrease of 0.3% would classify this demographic as an ‘unreached people group.’ From these stats, you may think that reaching out to this group would be difficult. 

However, it seems that the difference between the younger generation and ones before them is that Gen Z and Gen Alpha aren’t really making firm decision to reject God, they just don’t know much about Him. 

It’s very likely that many of these young people have had no contact with Christianity or Church outside of R.E lessons at school. Whilst older generations may have gone to church events with grandparents or other relatives, this connection is far less common than it once was. 

What’s remarkable is that this lack of teaching about Christianity seems to have made young people all the more curious to find out about it themselves!

The Times recently reported that Bible sales are going up, driven by a Gen Z audience. The Independent discovered that Gen Z are far less likely to be atheists that their parents or grandparents.

Christian researchers are finding the same thing! Fusion’s study demonstrated that an amazing 76% of students who aren't Christians say that they would go to church if a friend invited them. The Barna Group discovered that 64-85% of Christian’s decide to follow Jesus before their 18th birthday! The International Mission Board’s findings back this up too. They have termed this phenomenon the ‘4/14 window’ after discovering 70% of conversions happen between age 4 and 14.

The Search For Something Real

It feels like we’re in a paradox. On one hand, you’ve got this disconnect from traditional church. Maybe it’s the noise of the world, maybe it’s distrust of institutions, or maybe it’s just looking for things that feel authentic. But underneath it all, young people have a hunger for meaning, for connection, for something that goes beyond the surface.

At Breakout, we have seen this up close. There's this sense from so many of the young people, that they lack substance, that they feel they "can’t do anything" in life. They are looking for real security, something deep and lasting.

Our heart is that these youth find what they are searching for in Jesus. We believe He is the only one who can provide it.

Youth Camps As Connection Points

What the latest series of news articles show us is that there is a desire to learn more about Jesus. We need to meet young people where they are, letting them ask the questions they have and helping point them towards answers.

Our American Sports Camps are about creating space for genuine conversations and giving the opportunity to experience the reality of following Jesus. We want to give time to listen to the young people’s questions, allowing them to reflect, wrestle and explore.

Giving Opportunity To Explore

We’ve found that inviting youth to respond to Jesus’ call of ‘come and see’ results in an amazing response. For example: 

• Bodmin Light and Life saw 18 young people attending Alpha following a sports camp, 10 of whom made a decision for Christ. These then invited 6 more friends to join!

• Freedom Church in Bristol was able to launch a youth group off the back of their camp, going from 0 youth to 12. The next year, 22 young people wanted to come to the sports camp to find out more.

• At Glasgow Story Church, young people who loved the sports camp have opened up new relationships between the church and previously closed off community.

• Falmouth Light and Life have seen their youth ministry, Wild and Free, continually grow following their Breakout camps. 

  
  
  
  

Let’s Work Together To Reach Young People In Your Area

The harvest is ripe but the workers are few! In this blog, we have seen how much opportunity there is to connect with young people seeking Jesus. The team at Breakout would love to help your church connect with the young people in your area. 

Get in touch to discover more about partnering with us to run a youth camp. We don’t charge anything and will bring workers, equipment and more. 

Email j.greene@breakoutministries.co.uk today to start a conversation.