Article
The Rise of a Quiet Revival: 4 Priorities to Steward the Moment
Here are four key priorities for church planters engaging this spiritual hunger.
They are not coming in crowds—at least, not yet.
There are no stadiums filled, no billboards announcing revival, no front pages hailing a spiritual revolution. And yet—quietly, steadily, and perhaps in unlikely places—the latest figures show a hunger seems to be growing among young adults in my home in the United Kingdom. It is a hunger for God. And it may just be the early sign of, what some are calling, a quiet revival.
The Unexpected Return
Something surprising is happening. Despite the usual doomsday predictions of inevitable decline, recent studies show a growing number of 18 to 24-year-olds in the UK attending church regularly. A YouGov and Bible Society survey in early 2024 reported that 16 percent of young adults now say they attend church at least once a month, up from just 4 percent in 2018. Among them, a significant proportion are men.
Most of us did not expect this demographic to return to the pews! Young men, in particular, are often assumed to be spiritually disengaged, apathetic, distracted, or simply disinterested in church. And yet, the numbers show they are beginning to turn up—often quietly, sometimes awkwardly, but nonetheless, there.
Not What You’d Expect
They are not looking for a “cool church.” In fact, in many cases, they are being drawn to the opposite—not to celebrity pastors or laser lights, but to something deeply rooted, weighty, and unashamedly “other.”
Some are coming to churches where liturgy is recited, Scripture is read aloud without apology, and weekly communion is celebrated. Others are finding home in small, gritty evangelical plants where truth is preached clearly and lives are shared deeply. The attraction isn’t always stylistic—it’s spiritual. In a world of mindless scrolling and 20-second attention spans, these young adults seem to be hungry for something more, for transcendence.
They want reality, not relevance.
There is a quiet defiance in this hunger. In a culture of curated appearances and relentless distraction, many young men and women are discovering that the Christian faith offers something entirely different: a God who is holy, not tame, and a gospel that calls for repentance, not affirmation.
Why Now?
What has changed? Perhaps not the culture, but the condition of the soul within it. Our secular dream is perhaps wearing thin. For all its promises of freedom and liberty, modern Western life has delivered fragmentation, anxiety, and loneliness. The weightlessness of post-Christian Britain is proving hard to bear.
Young adults, especially Gen Z, are growing up in a world without moorings or hope. Many have never entered a church building before. But the hunger for meaning is still there. And now, in their own way, they are starting to look.
For some, the pandemic acted as a shaking, stripping away of distractions and control. For others, it’s been disillusionment with digital life. Social media gave voice, but not depth. Virtual friendships left many isolated. A curated life is not the same as a connected one.
In that vacuum, church—real, weighty church—can feel refreshingly different. It offers something enduring and unchanging, something bigger than the self.
Planting Churches for the Hungry
If young adults, especially young men, are returning with hunger, then church plants must become places where that hunger is fed, not dulled. The challenge for church planters today is not simply to attract people but to form communities of depth, discipleship, and difference.
This will demand a rethinking of our instincts in planting. Not flash, but faithfulness. Not polish, but presence.
Here are four key priorities for church planters engaging this spiritual hunger, currently seen in the UK but with relevance globally:
1. Clarity Over Cool
Young adults are not looking for the church to be a more moral version of the culture. They’re drawn to clarity, not in tone (which must be gentle and respectful) but in message. They want to know what the church stands for, what it believes, and whether it’s worth building a life around.
Preaching must be theological, unapologetic, and pastoral. It should assume biblical illiteracy but not spiritual apathy. A generation raised on TikTok is still capable of deep listening—if they sense that truth is being offered.
2. Church as Family, Not Performance
Many planters still feel the pressure to “launch big,” to produce a Sunday experience that mimics established churches. However, for many spiritually hungry young adults, it seems that hospitality, a biblical welcome, precedes belief. They need a household, not a stage.
Planting in a post-Christian, post-institutional context means prioritising meals, open homes, and open lives. Genuine hospitality. A small room with ten people who pray, eat, and study Scripture together may be far more spiritually fruitful than a rented auditorium with slick visuals and a fog machine.
3. A Call to Responsibility
One of the most compelling aspects of Christian faith, especially for young men, seems to be the call to responsibility. The church is not just a place to receive but a place to step up. A place to serve. A place to lead, grow, and fight alongside others for something bigger than self.
Planters should be quick to involve younger believers in the life of the church—training them in Scripture, entrusting them with tasks, and calling them into accountability. Many young adults have never been asked to commit to anything real before. The church can be the place where they learn how, where they learn that life is found in the service of others.
4. Weighty Worship
Many feel a hunger for something that speaks of eternity. That means we must resist the temptation to entertain or reduce. Don’t be afraid of liturgy, Scripture readings, depth, silence, and sacrament. Lead your worship gatherings to feel like an encounter, not with relevance but with reality.
This doesn’t mean it must be high church—but it must be holy.
Final Word
Friends, if the hungry are returning, we must meet them with more than novelty. We must meet them with Christ. Church plants will flourish not by being impressive but by being honest and holy.
The revival may be quiet, but it is real. Let us plant accordingly.
