Around the World with Gen Z (Guest: Jordan Whitmer)

Doug:
Hey, welcome to Go Mad with Doug and Brad. Take a look around. Doesn't take long to see.

Our world is in trouble spiritually. Gen Z, ages eleven to twenty-seven, man, they believe less in God than ever. They think the Bible's a fairy tale.

Jesus is for old people in their church somewhere, and they think absolute truth is for closed-minded dinosaurs. So what do we do? Do we surrender them to an eternity without Jesus?

Well, today we're going to hear from our guests what we can do, what is being done. to call young people across this planet into the kingdom of God. So let's go.

Jesse:
Hey friends, this is Jesse. Go Mad Producer. Today's guest is none other than the founder of the How to Life movement, Jordan Whitmer.

We had Jordan on an episode last season. So it was great to catch up with him, especially to hear about his recent literal trip around the world. Jordan spends his days empowering his generation.

to be Christ's ambassadors, and we can't think of a better guest to help us think through how to do just that. If you haven't already, you'll definitely want to check out How to Life. and to follow Jordan on Instagram.

Links are provided in the description. Also, if you haven't already, make sure you follow us on social media and rate and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps us get the word out

Brad:
Okay then let's go mad Well as you heard Doug and Jesse say we're so glad to have you back with us for Go Mad with Doug and Brad. I have to tell you that we're pretty excited today because We have got to talk with us about Gen Z, someone who represents his generation so well and is making an incredible difference for a podcast that's about making a difference. We love having Make a Difference people on. It is Jordan Whitmer who is here with us in studio today.

Jordan:
It's an honor to be here. It's an honor to be back on the Go Mad with. Uncle Doug and Brad to me.

That's Yeah, I like that. There we go. Now you're twenty four, right?

Doug:
I am. Do you remember do you remember your twenties? A lot of our listeners, I'm not sure if they can remember their twenties.

Hold on. Got one. There it is.

There we go. You know how I remember my twenties I remember my twenties because I could actually get out of bed without my joints making all sorts of weird noises in the morning. Yeah.

So I'm a little jealous that Jordan's like What are you talking about? You'll find out. You will.

Oh, you'll find out.

Brad:
I have to say that it is pretty impressive to have Jordan in studio with us, and we're going to get to this in just a minute, but we're going to get to hear about a whirlwind tour. For Jordan to be not just in the States, but here in this area. It's uh pretty exciting because he's going to be teaching at the On Eagles Wings Leadership Center, you've heard us tell about So we're excited for that. But the reality is that we are so encouraged about all we've been hearing God doing in Gen Z, but Doug, the reality is it doesn't start with the encouragement, unfortunately.

Doug:
Yeah, I mean, I am pretty amazed. at what Jordan has been able to do here recently. Forget the Rolling Stones.

Oh, they go on this big tour. Do they go to eight different countries in 19 days? Well probably.

But but they've got all sorts of help. Jordan did this on his own with some great help. We'll talk about that in a second.

But yeah, I mean, Jordan, look We are looking at a younger generation and I mean when you're talking about eleven year old to twenty-seven year old, that is Gen Z. Brad and I, uh uh near fifty would be Gen X. Um, Gen Y is around somewhere. I'm not sure where they are. But they but Gen Z, that's a huge number of people, ages eleven to twenty seven in our country and beyond.

And man, it doesn't take much to look around, check out the Gallup polls, all the big polls out there that tell us there is an alarming uptick in statistics that Show this generation has a lower view of God than ever. They don't believe in God. They don't go to church.

They think the Bible is a fairy tale. And as we like to discuss in this podcast, we're ambassadors for Christ, but we're in our 50s here. They're in their uh teen teenager years, in their 20s. We're going to talk a little bit about what we can do at our age to be ambassadors to these young people.

But first, Jordan, would you tell us a little bit about Your generation, this generation, what you're seeing spiritually.

Jordan:
Yeah, absolutely. Well, uh with Generation Z, and as I know we've shared some on the podcast before about the Uh when it comes to today's teenagers in America and and around the world, there often is a lot of bad news amongst uh the young people. Uh in the USA, I know the statistics show that only four percent, sadly, of Gen Z Americans hold a biblical worldview.

Wow. Meaning one out of every twenty-five American teenagers that you meet out on the street uh only about one in twenty-five on average would truly know what it means to live and lead and make a difference and or to to to believe in Jesus just in the in the biblical sense that we would hear And and that's uh concerning that it's that low. I wish it were higher.

Uh but uh thirty five percent in that same study claimed to be atheist, agnostic, or nothing in particular, which is the highest that there's ever been of the rise of the nuns. uh N O N E S nuns uh people in a generation and uh up from like thirty percent from millennials Gen Y so wow uh so that is concerning. Um but on the other hand there's good news because Gen Z seems to be quite uh open to conversations of faith.

So other more encouraging studies show that there is an interest in uh uh in in spiritual things and in faith conversations that need to be done very nuanced But uh but there is interest, uh which is good, but uh the reality that we're faced with is definitely uh pretty uh grim when you look at it at face value. Yeah.

Brad:
And Jordan, the reality is we need to know the the hard stats like that. Exactly. To know how good the hope is, and to know that the encouragement we're going to hear from you today how much that means because the reality is is that I think there's a lot of people out there who see Gen Z and see the younger generations and millennials to an extent where they're just like Well, we don't know what to do with them.

They're just almost writing them off. It's like, well, we don't know what to do, so we're just gonna leave them be and see what happens. And there's this kind of doom and gloom feel But the reality is that God is doing something special in Gen Z. And the cool thing is, is you have a front row seat to that.

Uh it's not I I think a lot of people would like, oh I'd like a ticket to that concert. Uh well Jordan can take us there through some of the things that he's seeing. Even through this whirlwind trip he just had.

Doug:
Yeah, Jordan, tell us about how to life. We've you've shared some uh of of that with us before, but tell us why there is a how-to life. Uh, you're the president of the organization.

So tell us why there is Hadle Life and give us some hope. What are you seeing no matter what country you go to, from all the reports I'm hearing from conversations I'm hearing with you, there are young people not only hungry for Jesus, but they are hungry to share this hope they have with others. So give us some hope.

For this generation.

Jordan:
Sure. Well eight years ago when I was a junior in high school, when I was sixteen uh years old, I wanted to do something to help reach my friends for Christ. uh in Arkansas uh and uh I got together with some of my Christian friends and fellow students from my high school and we uh committed to the idea of of planning a completely youth-led event to reach our community for Christ.

We realize that something led by students to outreach students could be deeply effective because of how much youth and young people listen to people like them, to their peers. So we uh started an event and uh had uh organized this and had over seven hundred and fifty young people that attended this event from all over our county and area and in northern Arkansas and and uh at that event uh there there was worship and music but then students sharing a ton of their uh stories or hope stories as I know we call them just stories testimonies about the difference that Jesus has made in our lives. And uh it really resonated with many people there.

And uh and then some uh some short messages all culminating in a gospel message at the end of the night uh where we invited students to uh begin a relationship with Christ and to commit their life uh to the Lord. And at that event there were about seventy five young people who did just that. And uh that first event that we called How to Life Yeah, that was just the name we came up with.

It's a cool catchy title, not grammatically correct.

Doug:
We know that, but we uh it's it's don't try to sit down and figure it out. I tried Don't don't do it. No prepositions, it's a whole thing. It's it's just

Jordan:
like it's a quite timeless name that God gave us for such a time as that and still is relevant for such a time as this and hopefully for the future too. But So now over the course though, long story short, over eight years, How to Life Movement has become a nonprofit organization of which I am the CEO, founder, executive director, president, whatever you want to call it, the uh person who helps head things up, uh helping uh lead an organization and now movement of young people that Slowly but surely just spread around our region in the middle of the US and then uh to five different states, then to thirteen different states, and now over the course of eight years there have been about one hundred and thirty How to Life movement events that have taken place across twenty-eight U. S. states, over half of the nation. In terms of states, uh as far as that goes, and then six uh seven countries around the world, the US, UK, Germany, France, Mexico, Canada, and now Singapore being the most recent one and about to be eight with Dominican Republic and the Caribbean.

Yeah, that will make for eight countries across three continents around the world, all with students in their communities reaching out and stepping up in the same way that happened when I was in high school. They many of these students that we meet have a very similar story to what I did, which was being a sixteen-year-old young person or seventeen, eighteen-year-old young person saying, I want to do something to reach my friends for Jesus. Uh my life has been changed by Christ.

I want to make a difference, but I don't know how I need a vehicle, uh mechanism by which to do that. And that's often the type of student that sends us a message on Instagram usually, just our How to Life movement page, and people from all over the world follow and pray and they're prayerful and then Then we have some calls and things and and then work to help facilitate young people around the world and that all led to most recently a global trip that I took. That's the one I'm coming off very fresh of.

I was uh building my whole trip around getting to Singapore for How to Life Singapore, that event that just happened. And uh that journey was amazing. Took me to eight countries.

Uh flew to France, then for a quick stop before Kenya, uh Nairobi, Kenya, then uh Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town, South Africa. before going to Singapore, then uh another country in Southeast Asia and that area, Malaysia, uh and then onward to uh Japan and Korea before coming back to Portland, Oregon, USA for a how to life out there in the Pacific Northwest. And then back to Chicago.

I circled that's where I'm living now, but over the course of nineteen days, circled the entire world uh more than a full circumnavigation. You gotta do twenty four thousand miles, I think, to circumnavigate, and I did twenty eight thousand, so Uh more than cleared that hurdle.

Doug:
And amazingly enough, he did that in forty-eight hours. Wait, wait a minute. Nineteen days.

Sorry, sorry. Pretty impressive. That's amazing.

There's that scripture that man Just even hearing about that makes me tired. 456 hours. Oh wow.

In Isaiah 40, it says even young people will grow faint and weary. Young men shall fall exhausted, but those who wait for the Lord will renew their strength. Amen.

They'll mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Jordan, it's been really cool seeing you and How to Life featured in some magazines, in other podcasts, on radio programs.

The word is getting out. But I want to know as as I bet you some of our listeners are wondering how much convincing, how much cajoling does it take? You there's a there are young people everywhere you have gone, every continent that want to share the hope of Jesus.

When they hear there's a vehicle like this When they're here, there's a way that they could, wait, I could share with my peers because I think we all agree there is. Something powerful about a young person reaching another young person. Yeah.

With on Eagle's wings, within RHM, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, we see the power of a Native American young person sharing Jesus with another Native American young person, you're seeing the power of a young person sharing their hope with other young people. Does it take a lot of convincing? Tell us about what kind of response you get when you say, oh, there is a way my German friend, there is a way my African friend to share hope with Jesus.

What's your response?

Jordan:
Yeah, I mean it it it doesn't take a lot of convincing often for uh some of these Christian young people, these leaders to do something and They uh I mean there definitely are a lot of young people who uh are like, oh, that sounds amazing. I could never do that. So like there definitely is a massive uh swath of young people who maybe aren't quite there yet or this wouldn't be uh for them right away. But over time by seeing others doing this, they're like, Well, I mean if they can do that there, then I'm sure we could do that here and

Doug:
And uh That's what's so exciting to me. Yes is it's it's about a young person seeing another person. They at first they're like, I could never do that.

My everyone's gonna laugh at me. I feel like I'm the only one. But but hold on.

I just saw someone who looks a lot like me, who sounds a lot like me, who has a lot of the same background I have. They are doing this. Why can't I?

This is how a movement gets started.

Jordan:
No, it it truly, really, really is. And just knowing that with young people around the world uh They they can make a difference and often they see their friends, they see their peers, and they're like, if that can happen there, that can happen here. And like in Europe, for example, sometimes some of the young people are like, oh, we we could never do that here.

This doesn't work, but then our friends in Hamburg, Germany are like, We did it in Hamburg, Germany. This is a city where it's point eight percent evangelical Christian. Very small, yet they had young people there who stepped up.

They fielded a team that put on an event and saw some incredible fruit happen. And uh and if it can happen there, if it can happen in Singapore in Asia Now people around Asia are like, well, we could probably do that in India. We could probably do that in Philippines.

We could probably do that in different places. And we're gonna see in the time to come. But our Our heart is that this is something that truly could be scalable.

The world is massive, but also the world is smaller than ever. It's more possible than ever because of social media and Zoom and airplanes, those three things in particular have made it possible for our generation to be the first generation in history to come of age in an era with all of those tools available. And uh the harvest is plentiful, the workers are few.

Yeah, is very true. And but we have so many tools now at our disposal that we can use to help reach the world. And I just view the opportunities truly to be Deeply endless today.

Doug:
This has got to be so exciting, so motivating for any listener, any friend of ours. who is a great commission person and who says, yeah, Jesus meant it when he said, bring the gospel to the ends of the earth. So exciting.

Jordan:
Yes.

Doug:
So

Brad:
Jordan, I have two questions. First one, you're gonna have to give me the quick answer to, all right? What does it mean for a Gen Z young person to be trusted?

How does it make them feel? Why don't the old people run it? Why don't with the people with all the experience, the people with the churches and all the money?

Why aren't they running this thing? Yeah, you're trusting them to do this. How does it make them feel to do that?

Jordan:
It's deeply encouraging for a Christian young person to know that people believe in them. And sadly, sometimes that doesn't always happen. One of our biggest hurdles that we find is adults that maybe They don't really come to rally and support the kids like we need them to in an area.

But they don't really get in the way either is normally what we see. I gotcha, yeah. But but when a young person does have the trust and support of even just one or two really caring Christian mentors in their community Saying this is amazing.

This is exactly what we need. It's sadly not very many that usually catch the vision, but some do, and those it goes a long way. So young people need to be trusted and believed in.

They might make some mistakes, sure, but that authenticness, that realness, will be a hundred times more valuable. They might fall flat on their face, but Odds are they probably won't. Yes. And they need the trust.

Brad:
And and that's really key. That that's okay, make a different step in here just to take a time out for our listeners. is one or two mentors you said.

It's not even about okay, they've got a whole church support, which is great if they can, but if you could even be that one or two, one of those people that believes in a young person. And I can tell you that If you trust, just like any age, but if you trust someone, a teenager with something, will they nail it the exact way you think? Probably not.

Might they make some mistakes? Probably, you know what? They can learn from that.

They can be a part of saying, hey, I'm gonna learn from someone who's been there before When they make a mistake and then they have someone that's there to catch them in that moment and say, Hey, I did the same thing when I was your age. Guess what? Here's a way you could protect yourself maybe next time.

It's so encouraging But the other part I just wanted to ask Jordan was in all of this, what are some common threads you're seeing in Gen Z? Because you're you've been traveling all around the world with this. And people could say, well, I know Gen Z in this country, but it's not just about one, what's happening in America.

What are you seeing are the common threads of hope? in Gen Z around the world.

Doug:
Not just Gen Z. I mean when Gen Z gets excited, the generation Ahead of them, behind them gets excited because this is young people you're talking k people in their twenties that have a loud voice Uh, there is some real excitement in other generations. So there's something about lighting a fire under this generation that sees a fire lit in other generations. So yeah, Brad's question though.

Jordan:
Yeah, so when it comes to young people around the world, there's a few things and And this is kind of just any anyone that's been asking me, Jordan, what are your biggest takeaways from this trip around the world? And and and I do a lot more than just this one trip. This one just was extra uh a little bit more extraordinary in the sense of circling the entire world, but I almost did the equivalent in December, just not because of the route I took, but my body felt like I circled the world by going to Singapore then too.

But the this time I literally circled the whole world. But Um, over the course of this trip and kind of just a rapid fire time in Africa and Asia, but also uh the time I spent in North America and everywhere else, uh When it comes to uh young people, uh, we have more in common than any other than any generation has ever had in history, the global youth culture of Gen Z around the world. share so much in common.

We use the same Instagram, the same TikTok, the same social media. We're growing up with smartphones. And that's the majority of the world.

Like it's not like, oh well, only like there's a lot of stereotypes. I think that we have about the world, but like most people in the world have smartphones. Like that is a fact now.

And wasn't true fifteen years ago, but now it is, certainly amongst young people. And Gen Z two billion people of the world population. Is that right?

The world especially in Africa, over half are Gen Z because of the way the population works there. But Um, when it comes to the young people around the world, they have so much in common. And often when we think of like missions and and things, we think of so many things that we maybe don't have in common with people like, oh, like we have to contextualize as we go into this culture or this sort of thing and and and we do need to do that, especially I think as American Christians, we need to think how can we really make sure that we understand cultures we're working in and that sort of thing.

But on and w that there's essentialness to that. However, on the other hand, there's so much that we have in common and this common mission and this common heart that we have rallying behind the cross The cross is a unifying message for the entire world. Jesus is unifying the world.

Like we are all coming together, every tribe, people, nation, and tongue, as Revelation 7, 9, and many other parts of the Bible talk about. behind Jesus, before the throne. And uh it's so encouraging to see that.

And when we work with young people, it's I see s these similarities and so many similar things. Kids facing battles in their countries. Uh the young people in many countries uh need hope and uh there's a lot of work to do.

A lot of people are struggling to reach young people on every continent. But there is hope and that's why we're really seeing this as a global uh collective and in battle and initiative, more so than just oh, one place or another.

Doug:
Jordan, I'm still stuck on this two billion number. Yeah. That's that's two billion young people, each with a name, a background, and an eternity.

Two billion eternities. Um, so Jordan, look, we're gonna start to wrap this up already. The time goes so fast, and we're talking with a great guest.

like you. But I gotta ask you this because we got some folks that are listening that are Brad's age, my age. What I I I AKA old.

AKA crank the joints. I'll bet they're wondering, okay, well, I'm not in my twenties, but they probably know some people I'm not eleven to twenty-seven, but they have kids that are, or grandkids that are, or people they care about that are. Let me ask you a weird question.

Jordan, why are you the way you are? And Jeremiah, Jeremiah said, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you before you were born, I consecrated you, I appointed you a prophet to the nations. I think if you want to hear that, Jordan.

Then I said, Lord God, but but I don't know how to speak. I'm only a youth. But the Lord said to me, Do not say I am only a youth For to all whom I send you you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.

We need some older folks. that can speak that encouragement to a young person who's saying, no one wants to hear what I have to say. I'm so young.

What did your folks do? Uh why is Jordan the way? What did you do?

Time in the word. How did your folks prepare you to be this kind of person so we can get some ideas?

Jordan:
Sure. I mean, for my parents, I mean, they're very much in the generation of a lot of your listeners, Generation X and uh grew up and uh and they well w as I was growing up, they were deeply intentional about exposing me to mission and ministry and and God's big world and uh and we just did things Quite differently in in in my family, I think, compared to what people would say would be typically normal, uh, in terms of just normal American dream, goals, and aspirations. We just never have valued that.

And uh that's not been a major priority. And uh and and and and yes, there have been tough financial times. Yes, there's things that uh for the most part, most in Gen X, I know, and most in the older generations have been hit by oh economy, this, this, that, but For us, I know, I mean, yes, that has been a factor in other things, but we've still always been like, well, it's earth stuff, life is short, we're everything here that what matters on that we do is stuff that's eternal.

And uh I grew up with that sort of mentality and and and that doesn't always translate to kids. Kids get to make their own decisions. Parents get to make their own decisions.

But I do know that my parents set a very good example for me. And And uh by by living it out in their own life, uh, to the best that they can and uh just seeing their intentionality to invest into people's lives and into discipling people and And my challenge for anyone in my parents' generation and uh in your generation here, like, is uh is to empower young people to believe in them and uh whether it be your kids or your uh your nieces and nephews, your uh your your your friends, kids, whoever, the young people that you know in your world, to let 'em know you believe in them. One thing I often do see sometimes in older generations is a bit more apathy sometimes.

Just like, you know I'm kind of okay and we're going through the status quo, going through the motions, cause it's easy. It's what's normal. Life gets busy.

We live in a busy world, a busy uh society, but when it comes to investing in young people, like we've got to it's gotta start somewhere and it can start with you and uh and setting an example and showing a contagious faith for the Lord. Young people need to see that. And that's where you often see difference.

Not always, but often. Uh if there's a impact, it often will come through something like that.

Doug:
Trust them, allow them to fail. Live it. I've got a sister that is uh happens to be your mom and she makes a difference everywhere she goes. I know you saw that and maybe provide them resources that they need to do something like this. Um, all things and many other things that we in our generation can do to help your generation be ambassadors and us Be ambassadors to that generation.

Brad:
One thing I'd add to that, uh allow them to fail aspect. We don't want the failure, but don't hold that against them. Don't shame them through it and give them another chance.

Make sure you give them another chance. Uh the Jordan We've got to wrap up our time here. I do want to say I'm going to ask you for a couple key ways people can pray for Gen Z. But what I want to just let people know is if you've Enjoyed hearing from Jordan.

I know we're just sitting here loving hearing that and we get to hear from more regularly, but to hear these updates so encouraging for us He has a podcast. It's called Gen Z Today. Yes.

It's a podcast on all major platforms. You can find that. And he has some great guests.

Some of these very young people he's talking about from around the world, all over the place. You'll get to hear some cool accents, if nothing else.

Jordan:
Oh yes.

Brad:
You check that out. And uh what's a website they can find out more about how to life

Jordan:
Yeah, so uh to learn more about how to life, uh it's just how to lifemovement. com. Uh you can find more there.

And then for the podcast, that's genztoday. com. We have both those links there and And you can learn a lot more there.

And then and and if you are on Instagram, I know quite a few of you are probably, uh find me on there. I'm just at Jordan Whitmer or How to Life Movement, our page on there. Those are Really key ways to stay in touch with some of what God's doing with young people and I hope it'll be encouraging to you at minimum.

Doug:
Team, make a difference. Go to that site, pray, provide resources.

Brad:
Yeah, I will say that uh raising money for any type of evangelism, especially with younger people and everything, it's a challenge. You should definitely check out how you could be part of that. And Jordan Stories on Instagram. are great to watch. So I'm trying to try to keep it entertained.

Jordan:
Would you pray for boldness? Would you pray that uh young people are encouraged? Would you pray that young people really truly don't the ones that have a fire for the Lord in their life that they don't lose that fire.

For those who don't have it, that they would get that fire. Uh and then particularly just to pray for the Many, many, sadly, the large majority young people in this world that still don't know Jesus, they've got misconceptions about Jesus, or maybe they've never even heard the name of Jesus in any context. Even in places close to us.

But they need the Lord pray that they might find Jesus and that there be revival and awakening amongst a generation around the world, like God has done in generations past.

Brad:
Jordan, thanks for being here with us today. And from all of us, all of you, remember, until next time, go mad