Why Passion's Louie Giglio Believes Young People—Said to be Leaving the Church—Are Really Walking Toward Jesus

Aimee Herd : Mar 4, 2014
Nicola Menzie – Christian Post

"Everywhere we go to do an event, there is an arena of some kind full of young people, full of 18-year-olds, 20-year-olds worshipping Jesus. So I think the Church is actually gaining ground with Millennials and not losing ground. I just think at this point it's just hard for us to quantify that." -Louie Giglio

(Atlanta)—In a Christian Post interview, Passion founder, and pastor of Passion City Church; Louie Giglio discussed the dilemma some recent surveys have pointed out; young people leaving the familiar church settings in which they grew up, for everything outside of it.

Giglio—who, together with his wife, Shelley, have led perhaps more than a million college-age youth toward the Lord—believes this perceived crisis is actually a fervent search for genuine truth.

Below are a couple excerpts from CP's interview with Louie Giglio, to read the full article, Click Here.

Regarding what he has learned about young people, over the years of putting on Passion Conferences, Louie responded:

What I've learned about them is that they're hungry; they want something that's real. I think that's why we've had a lot of success with Passion honestly. It's not that we are slick or professional or that we've marketed ourselves well. I think it's just that we keep presenting Jesus, and not trying to add to Jesus, just presenting Jesus. Jesus has done a great job — I mean, God has gone to extraordinary lengths to reveal Himself to us in the person of Jesus. God made flesh, there's no greater miracle than that. So what we try to do is just keep Jesus front and center. He speaks for Himself, His teachings are recorded for us, His life ... By the Spirit we believe we can have a relationship with Him right now, so we try to push Jesus to the front and let Him be the central focus...

I think that's what people want. They want something that's true, something that's real. They don't want to be played, they don't want to be sold anything. They want something that, on the other hand that's challenging and demanding, something that's worth their life. Something they can walk away from and say, "That's worth me giving my life." Once you put Jesus in that position for them, it's amazing to see the transformation that comes and the purpose and meaning that comes to people's lives.

Regarding young people leaving the Church, Louie said:

I don't discount the surveys. I think that all of us when we hit the 19, 20, 21, 22 age bracket, we question things in life. That's normal. I think people in church and people out of church do that. We question our background, we test our moorings. I think that's true of everybody. I don't know if I would believe necessarily that Christians, Jesus-following Millennials are leaving the church in large numbers. They may be leaving the church they grew up in, but I don't know that they're completely leaving the church. There are a lot of churches that don't hit the radar...

Every week at Passion City Church (in Atlanta) I see the faces of young people. Everywhere I go, I see the faces of young people. They may be leaving a more traditional church, but I don't think they're walking completely away from Jesus. I think a lot of students right now, young people are walking toward Jesus.