A summer camp founder in South Carolina says Christian revival is happening among the age group known as Generation Z, people born between 1999 and 2015.
Crossroads Summer Camp, hosted on Anderson University’s campus in South Carolina, was founded in 1996 by Clayton King, a traveling evangelist who’s reaching the next generation by sharing the gospel and teaching them truth, meaning, and purpose.
“Eighty-five percent of all Christian converts in America will make a decision to receive Christ as Savior before they turn 19 years old,” King explained. “Now, there are some things that we know about Gen Z. They’re digital natives. They grew up with iPads and iPhones. They grew up connected to technology.”
And research shows that could be why Gen Z is seen as losing their religion. The American Survey Center calls a third of this age group ‘religious nones’, meaning no religious affiliation. That’s why King and his team are focused on reaching Generation Z with the gospel.
“It is essential we preach and teach the Bible and share the good news of the love of God to them when they’re young – before the world has a chance to beat them up – chew them up and spit them out,” King said.
This year, more than 3,000 campers accepted Jesus as their personal savior at Crossroads Summer Camp.
“I finally felt something different – fulfilled with Christ’s Holy Spirit,” said one camper in her video testimony.
King attributes this surge in salvations to the goodness of God compared to what the world has to offer.
“I think they’ve seen the materialism of our world. The ideologies that are being shoved down their throats. Incessantly, they’re all empty,” he said. “And when they feel the presence of God, when they taste and see that the Lord is good, nothing else will satisfy them.”
King’s wife, Sharie, and co-founder of their separate nonprofit called Clayton King Ministries says she sees the Holy Spirit moving in each student’s decision to choose Jesus.
“And that’s what revival feels like, I think is just this uncompromised desire to say, ‘Well, this is what I see in the world. And I see something better being offered to me in Jesus Christ,'” Sharie said.
King’s son, Jacob, is also stepping into his role as a traveling evangelist at 20 years old. He is passionate about sharing the gospel with his generation and believes Gen Z is desperate for identity and hungry for truth.
“I want everyone that I come in contact with, to be able to see the goodness and the power, and the might of God,” he said.
Today, the King family serves all age groups through Clayton King Ministries offering marriage conferences, coaching networks, and mission trips. Clayton also preaches at NewSpring Church with several locations in South Carolina.
After 36 years of sharing the gospel, King’s message remains the same, and he believes this generation is experiencing a genuine revival.
“If you want to repent of your sin and ask Jesus to save you, stand up right now. And by standing up, you’re identifying yourself with Jesus because there’s no shame in the gospel. And these students are not even hesitating. It is nothing short of miraculous,” he noted.
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