Upcoming ARC Church Planter Noah Herrin on Embracing Gen Z: The Key to Thriving Local Churches

Gen Z is often talked down about in many different aspects of life. Yet, ARC church planter Noah Herrin says this generation is the reason he is so excited about the future of his local church.

Herrin, a 28-year-old ARC church planter from Nashville, Tennessee, is leading a team of young adults who strongly desire to build a church that’s able to reach lost people in their city. So, while many people in the country believe Gen Z could be the final nail in the coffin of faith in Jesus, Herrin believes quite the opposite — that Gen Z will usher in a revival of America.

Gen Z approaches life differently than generations before them, and as such, they worship differently. There are three things Herrin says Gen Z is looking for in a local church and from its leaders.

Commitment to Community

Connecting with people has been made easier than ever, thanks to today’s technology. But it’s harder than ever to find a real community. A New York Times report from April 2022 cited research that says 61% of adults experienced feelings of loneliness on a regular basis.

Gen Z craves real community, not yet another group of strangers to chat online with. Too many options already exist for online chatting, and Gen Z wants something different.

They want a place to share life with, and a local church that hosts a strong in-person community can fulfill that desire. That “community” isn’t just Bible study, though. It’s a church that’s dedicated to meeting regularly, intentionally, and sacrificially while giving back to those around them.

Available Leaders

Access is what is most important for Gen Z. They have grown up with immense access to people and things thanks to technology.

Yet this “access” doesn’t allow them to have one-on-one contact with people. This is what Gen Z desires in a church community — access to their church leaders. They want to know not only the “why” in addition to the “what,” and they want to hear it directly from their church leaders.

For church leaders, this means they need to ensure they are present and available for Gen Z. This will make a major difference in attracting young people to the church and keeping them there.

More Bible

Noah Herrin, a church planter with ARC Churches, also says that Gen Z desires more Scripture than they do stories. They want to know not just the great stories of the Bible but how they can engage with them.

Real-world stats back this up. The American Bible Society has reported that 81% of youth in Gen Z and 74% of adults in the same generation say they’re curious about Scripture.

Members of Gen Z don’t want to be treated with baby hands. They want to be dealt with heads-on and all-in. It is important that they feel challenged, and they want to get that from their church as well.

About ARC (Association of Related Churches)

ARC (Association of Related Churches) is a cooperative of independent churches from different denominations, networks, and backgrounds who strategically resource church planters and pastors to help them reach people with the message of Jesus. ARC exists to see a thriving church in every community, reaching people with the message of Jesus. Since its beginning in 2001, ARC has grown into a global organization and has helped plant more than 1,000 churches.