Hello, and welcome back to Nations 4 Jesus. Today I want to tell you about something that has me absolutely on fire with hope for this generation. Something that's happening right now on college campuses across America that I believe is nothing short of a genuine move of God.
If you've been paying attention to what's happening in higher education over the last few years, you know that college campuses have been considered some of the most secular, hostile environments for Christians in America. The recent Pro-Palestinian, Anti-Semitic, Anti-American demonstrations really brought this to light. These are places where faith has been mocked, where biblical values have been rejected, where students have been taught that Christianity is outdated and irrelevant.
But something is shifting. Something powerful. Something that few saw coming. Gen Z—the generation that grew up with smartphones, social media, and unprecedented anxiety—is encountering Jesus on college campuses in numbers we haven't seen in decades. And they're not just quietly believing—they're gathering by the thousands to worship, getting baptized in arenas, and boldly declaring that Jesus is Lord.
And friends, just this past week, we saw even more evidence that this movement is accelerating! Let me tell you about what happened at NC State, Clemson, and Utah Valley University.
At North Carolina State University, the UniteUS gathering drew an estimated 6,000 students to J.S. Dorton Arena for a night of worship, preaching, and prayer. According to CBN News, hundreds of students responded to the Gospel and 77 were baptized that night! This marked one of the most significant campus worship events in NC State's history. Six thousand students coming out on a weeknight to worship Jesus at a major secular university!
Then at Clemson University, more than 6,000 students and community members gathered at T. Ed Garrison Arena for another powerful UniteUS event. CBN reports that hundreds "fully surrendered their lives to Jesus," and 78 individuals were baptized on site. Two major universities, two nights, 12,000 students total, hundreds of salvations, and over 150 baptisms!
And Greg Laurie's "Hope for America" outreach at Utah Valley University—the same campus where Charlie Kirk was tragically killed—drew about 7,800 people in person, with an additional 210,000 online viewers via livestream. The event was organized in just six weeks following Charlie's death and was intended as a message of hope, healing, and Gospel clarity. More than 2,100 people made professions of faith, both in person and online! Sixty-seven partnering churches across the region came together to make this happen.
Friends, this is happening right now!
Let me give you the bigger picture of Unite US. This is a student-initiated movement that started at Auburn University in 2024, and it has exploded across America in 2025. These aren't events organized by pastors or parachurch ministries from the outside. These are students—college students—saying, "We want to gather and worship Jesus on our campus."
And here's what's remarkable: According to the latest statistics from Unite US, over the last two years they have reached over 110,000 students on 18 campuses, with more than 16,000 professions of faith! And that's not even counting the events from this past week! When you add NC State and Clemson, we're looking at 18+ campuses, well over 120,000 attendees, and salvations continuing to climb.
These are arena-style gatherings where students worship, hear the Gospel, and participate in baptisms and public commitments to faith. And the fruit is undeniable.
Let me give you some specific examples of what God has been doing throughout 2025. At Purdue University in March, 4,500 students gathered for worship and prayer. Nearly half of them—over 2,000 students—confessed Jesus as Savior that night! Multiple water baptisms followed. Organizers described it as a "revival" with intense spiritual encounters.
At Ohio State University in February, around 7,000 students filled an arena for worship. Nearly 2,000 students made faith commitments in one night! Think about that—2,000 students at one of America's largest secular universities saying yes to Jesus.
At Auburn University in April—the origin campus of this movement—10,000 students gathered in a massive declaration that their campus would be a "house of prayer." Ten thousand! High-energy worship with thousands praising Jesus, declaring His name over their university.
The University of Oklahoma in September saw over 10,000 students fill an empty arena for Gospel preaching and worship. Many stepped forward to follow Jesus that night. At the University of Tennessee in October, 8,000 students prayed and praised Jesus at the Food City Center. Five hundred made decisions for Christ, and hundreds were baptized!
And can we talk about the baptisms for a moment? At the University of South Florida in October, around 7,000 students gathered for a powerful worship night. There were approximately 2,000 salvations and over 300 baptisms! One remarkable story from that night was a former Satan worshiper who was baptized onstage. From darkness to light—right there in front of thousands of students!
At the University of Cincinnati, the arena filled for praise and worship. Hundreds were baptized, and 2,000 students were connected to local churches. The organizers called it "a glimpse of heaven."
And now we add NC State with 77 baptisms and Clemson with 78 baptisms—all in a single week! These aren't just emotional experiences—these students are getting baptized, joining churches, and committing to follow Jesus with their lives!
Here's what sets this movement apart: Unite US emphasizes student ownership. This isn't a visiting evangelist coming in with a big production. This is students saying, "We're taking responsibility for reaching our campus." They're organizing the events, leading worship, sharing testimonies, and inviting their friends.
The NC State and Clemson events perfectly reflect this model—campus ministries and local believers coming together to lead their peers toward Christ. This is exactly what we saw in the Fourth Great Awakening—the Jesus Movement of the 1960s and 70s. That movement wasn't led by established church hierarchies. It was young people reaching young people. And that's what we're seeing again!
Turning Point USA has also played a significant role in this spiritual awakening, particularly through TPUSA Faith, which integrates Christian principles into campus activism. While TPUSA events aren't exclusively worship-focused like Unite US gatherings, they blend political speaking with faith elements—prayers, discussions of biblical values, and bold declarations of Christian conviction.
Following the assassination of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk in September 2025, the organization saw explosive growth. Over 135,000 requests for new chapters came in—many of them faith-focused—and they launched "This Is The Turning Point" 2025 Campus Tour. TPUSA Faith reports what they're calling the "Charlie Kirk Effect"—a 15% boost in church attendance among young people and increased Bible sales among youth, crediting Kirk's legacy of faith-infused campus outreach.
Charlie's death became a catalyzing moment. His memorial service featured unprecedented public Gospel declarations by government leaders like Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Young people watched their leaders be unashamed of Jesus, and it emboldened an entire generation to do the same.
And Greg Laurie's "Hope for America" event at Utah Valley University—organized in just six weeks on the very campus where Charlie was killed—demonstrates how tragedy is being transformed into Gospel opportunity. With 7,800 in person, 210,000 online, and over 2,100 professions of faith, the message is clear: Hope wins. The Gospel advances. What the enemy meant for evil, God is using for good.
My own young adult children were deeply impacted by Charlie's death. Instead of responding with despair, they—along with countless others their age—began engaging people about Jesus Christ. That's the mark of genuine revival—tragedy becomes a platform for the Gospel.
But it's not just Unite US and TPUSA. There are multiple streams converging into this revival. Sean Feucht's Let Us Worship movement has contributed to the broader momentum. Greg Laurie's Harvest events continue reaching tens of thousands, now with massive digital reach—210,000 online viewers for the Utah event alone! Media outlets are noting a "countercultural turn" among Gen Z, with revivals spreading organically across the nation.
And the statistics back this up! Bible sales have surged 41.6% since 2022. Religious app downloads are up 79.5% since 2019. Contemporary Christian music streams have increased 50% since 2019. And here's the big one: Gen Z and Millennials now lead church attendance in America! For the first time in decades, younger generations are attending church at higher rates than older generations.
So what's driving this? Why is Gen Z—the generation raised on TikTok and Instagram, the generation told that truth is relative and religion is oppressive—suddenly filling arenas to worship Jesus?
I believe it's because they've seen through the empty promises of our culture. They've experienced the anxiety, depression, and purposelessness that comes from a life without God. They're the most medicated, most therapy-dependent, most anxious generation in history. And they're discovering that only Jesus satisfies the deepest longings of their hearts.
They've tried everything else. They've tried finding identity in sexuality, politics, social media followers, academic achievement, activism. And none of it has filled the void. But when they encounter Jesus—not religious performance, but genuine relationship with the living God—they respond with wholehearted devotion!
And here's what excites me most: This isn't just about big events. These gatherings are producing lasting fruit. Students are getting baptized and joining local churches. At the University of Cincinnati event, 2,000 students were connected to churches. At the Utah Harvest event, 67 local churches partnered together to follow up with new believers. That's discipleship! That's what genuine awakening looks like—not just decisions, but disciples.
TPUSA Faith is providing resources for chapters to host Bible studies and prayer groups on campus. Students are starting their own prayer movements. Some campuses are seeing ongoing weekly worship gatherings. The revival atmosphere isn't just during the big arena events—it's continuing in dorm rooms, campus ministries, and local churches.
And these students are being countercultural in the best way. They're not conforming to the secular campus culture. They're not hiding their faith. When everyone else is protesting for political causes, they're gathering to worship Jesus. When others are seeking identity in a thousand different places, they're finding it in Christ.
This is what revival looks like—believers who are unashamed, bold, and willing to be different from the culture around them. At UC Berkeley in November, TPUSA held an event with about 900 attendees despite protests outside. Berkeley! One of the most liberal, secular campuses in America. And students showed up to declare their faith despite opposition.
This shouldn't surprise us. Throughout Scripture, God has used young people in powerful ways. David was a youth when he killed Goliath. Jeremiah was young when God called him to be a prophet—and Jeremiah said, "I'm too young!" But God said, "Don't say you're too young. Go where I send you and say what I command you."
Timothy was young when Paul mentored him for ministry. Paul told him, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity" (1 Timothy 4:12). That's exactly what we're seeing—young believers setting an example for the rest of us in their bold faith and unashamed worship!
Now here's what's crucial: If this is a genuine awakening, it must produce missionaries! Every great awakening in American history has sent waves of missionaries to the ends of the earth. The question is: Will this Gen Z revival do the same?
With over 7,400 unreached people groups representing 3.3 billion people who have never heard the Gospel, we desperately need this generation to say, "Here I am, send me!" If God is reviving the American church, it's not just so we can have great worship experiences on campus. It's so we can reach the world!
I'm praying that these thousands of students who've given their lives to Jesus—16,000+ through Unite US alone, plus 2,100 at the Utah Harvest event, plus countless others—will include hundreds, maybe thousands, who will become missionaries to unreached peoples. I'm praying that this generation will be the one that finishes the Great Commission.
So what can we do to support and participate in what God is doing? Let me give you five practical ways.
First, pray! Pray for these campus revivals to continue and spread. Pray for the students who've made commitments to Christ—that they'll be discipled and grow strong in their faith. Pray for protection from the enemy who will try to quench this movement.
Second, if you're a college student, get involved! Find out if Unite US or TPUSA Faith has a presence on your campus. If not, consider starting a prayer group or Bible study. Be bold in sharing your faith with your friends.
Third, if you're a parent, encourage your college-age children to participate in these movements. Fan the flames of their passion for Jesus!
Fourth, support campus ministries financially. Organizations like Cru, InterVarsity, YWAM, BCM, Navigators and others need resources to disciple the thousands of new believers.
And fifth, connect this revival to missions! Help students see that God is reviving them not just for their own blessing, but to send them to the nations.
This campus revival is part of something bigger. It's connected to the alternative Super Bowl worship events being planned for 2026. It's connected to the bold faith declarations we saw at Charlie Kirk's memorial service. It's connected to the surge in Bible sales, app downloads, and Christian music streams. It's connected to the fact that young people are leading church attendance for the first time in decades.
All these streams are converging into what could be the Fifth Great Awakening. Fifty years after the Jesus Movement ended, God is moving again among young people. And just like that movement transformed American Christianity and sent missionaries around the world, I believe this one will too!
I have to tell you—as someone who's been watching the decline of Christianity in America for years, who's seen churches close and young people walk away from faith—what's happening right now fills me with incredible hope! God is not done with America. He's not done with this generation. In fact, He might be just getting started!
My own children are part of this generation, and seeing their faith emboldened by what God is doing on campuses, by the example of leaders who aren't ashamed of Jesus, by the worship movements and prayer gatherings—it encourages my heart as a parent. This is what we've been praying for!
So here's my challenge: Don't sit on the sidelines of what God is doing. If you're a student, be part of it! If you're a parent, support it! If you're a church leader, disciple these young believers! If you're a missionary mobilizer, recruit from this revival! And all of us should pray, give, and participate in whatever way God calls us.
Let me pray: Lord, thank You for what You're doing on college campuses across America! Thank You for NC State and Clemson just this week—12,000 students, hundreds saved, over 150 baptized! Thank You for the 2,100 who responded at Utah Valley University. Thank You for raising up a generation of young people who aren't ashamed of Jesus, who worship boldly, who are willing to be countercultural for Your sake.
Pour out Your Spirit even more! Let this revival spread to every campus in America and around the world. Protect these new believers from the enemy's attacks. Disciple them into mature followers of Christ. And raise up missionaries from this movement to take the Gospel to every unreached people group on earth. Use Gen Z to finish what previous generations started—the complete evangelization of the world! In Jesus's name, amen.
Thank you for joining me today. If this episode has stirred your heart, share it with others—especially college students and parents of college students. Let's spread the word about what God is doing!
Until next time, remember—keep your eyes on the nations and watch for what God is doing in the next generation!
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