How To Neighbhor

Here’s a 4-part devotional study built to help you be a good neighbor to everyone around you, especially those who belong to Gen Z. This devotional is designed to help you engage the next generation and assist them in their faith journeys. 
Each section has a devotional for you to Ponder, a section designed to help you Pray, and a few questions to assist you in putting what you have learned into Practice.
Ready to Begin?

Introduction
Many times, we relegate the work of evangelism to ministers and missionaries without acknowledging that the Great Commission, “Go and make disciples”—was given to every one of us. You might think you don’t have much to offer, but as you read this devotional study, I hope you will see that what you already hold in your hands is more than enough. With that in mind, here are four things you can offer the next generation to help them begin their journey of following Jesus.
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1. Offer Them Real Relationship
Ponder
Generation Z, the young people in our youth groups and on our college campuses—are different from the Millennials who came before them. Unlike Millennials, who may have left the Church due to “church hurt,” many Gen Z members don’t have much experience with the Church at all. They’re mostly uninitiated in church life, so they don’t understand its purpose or function. Their views often come from culture, not experience. But they’re waiting for invitations to explore Jesus on their own. When we invite them to church, many are eager to come because, for some, it’s their very first invitation.
Traditionally, people come to church for major life events like weddings or baptisms, but this doesn’t work as well for Gen Z. They marry later and delay many major life milestones.
What does this mean? Just an invitation, without a real relationship, will not make them feel welcome. So, start as you would with any new relationship be a friend, be a resource. Begin praying for the members of this generation already in your life. Witness to them with your life, not just your words. As they learn the difference Jesus has made in your life, they will become curious, creating the much-needed opening for you to invite them into Christian community. Without this first step, none of the other good things you have to offer will take hold.
To an outsider, the Church is often known only for its rules. But rules without relationship present God as a tyrant. Rules with relationship establish Sonship and Daughterhood, for the Father only corrects those He loves. Gen Z is not going to check out your church if they can’t get to know who you are first. Start where you are, volunteer with youth, coach a sport, or simply learn the name of the cashier you see weekly. Each interaction leaves a mark. Relationships are the first and most important step in evangelism; without them, all else falls flat.
Pray
Lord, help me see the young people around me as You see them. Give me courage to reach out in love—not with rules alone but with genuine care that reflects Your heart.
Practice
• Where in your daily rhythm could you intentionally connect with a young person?
• What might change if you treated every small interaction as an opportunity to be Jesus to someone?
• Who do you already know that you could begin building a relationship with this week? Write their names and commit to pray for them daily.
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2. Offer Them a Family
Ponder
As we shared in the last devotional, Gen Z frequently delays major life events such as marriage and children. They also resist the idea of “settling down.” More than a third identify as religiously unaffiliated. This lack of religious ties, combined with weaker family connections, leaves many feeling lonely and isolated. While they may not have direct church hurt, they still feel hurt. Living outside of community is always injurious to the soul, no matter your age.
Loneliness is a serious problem, especially among young people aged 16–24, who report feeling lonelier than even older adults. In fact, 73% of Gen Z says they feel lonely sometimes or always. That means three out of every four young people regularly experience crippling loneliness. Research shows loneliness can harm health as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and social isolation increases the risk of early death by 32%.
Did you catch that? Gen Z is a lonely generation—73% said they were lonely. Many grew up in fractured homes. Their souls are restless, chasing belonging in subcultures, celebrities, or even self-made identities. Gen Z is deconstructing faith, but if they do it alone, they often reconstruct poorly. If we offer them family, we can become a safe place for questions and help them find the right building blocks.
The second thing you can offer them is family. God sets orphans in families. We are the family of God, and we must be ready to receive Gen Z—not just into our churches, but into our homes, cars, and spaces. People can’t be your family if they can’t enter your space. Hospitality is one of the greatest evangelistic tools in a believer’s arsenal.
If you can’t invite someone into your home for a meal, invite them to eat out with your family or friends. Include them as you pursue your hobbies. Consider your daily rhythms: which parts of your day can you invite someone into that will thwart their loneliness and enrich your own life? These acts of hospitality offer holy interruptions where Jesus can make an appearance through your life. They create opportunities to share testimony in natural ways, build unforgettable memories, and become anchors of love for restless souls. If we do this, our homes, cars, and tables can become healing pools of God’s presence.
Pray
Father, thank You for inviting me into Your family. Show me how to open my life so others can find belonging in You through me.
Practice
• When was the last time you invited someone hurting to share a meal with you?
• What would it look like to let your home or spaces (not just your church) be a place of belonging?
• How can you help someone rebuild faith safely, without judgment?
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3. Offer Them an Example of Christ
Ponder
When I first entered an AG church, God set me among people whose lives overflowed with the fruit of the Spirit. They didn’t wait for me to shape up before giving me responsibility. They coached me through my first steps in ministry, correcting and encouraging me within relationships.
Gen Z doesn’t need polished leaders who have “arrived”—they need companions who are still learning but faithfully showing them what it means to follow Christ.
In your pursuit of Jesus, bring Gen Z along. Make sharing your testimony with children and grandchildren the new normal in your household. Let the people around you know why and how you love Jesus. When they offend, irritate, or antagonize you, give them mercy! They are already used to judgment from most of the world, so when the Christian response to failure is mercy, the contrast will make them think twice.
Be clothed in the fruit of the Spirit. Cultivate love, joy, peace, kindness, and patience, and offer this to them instead of what the world has given them. If you do this, you will inevitably offer them an example of Christ—up close and personal.
Pray
Jesus, thank You for those who showed me Your way by their example. Make my life a living testimony for the next generation.
Practice
• Who once let you “tag along” in faith, and what impact did it have?
• What part of your walk with Christ could you invite a younger believer to see?
• How might your imperfections actually encourage authenticity in the next generation?
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4. Offer Them the Supernatural
Ponder
A 2018 study revealed there are more witches in America than Presbyterians. That alarming statistic tells us members of Gen Z who are so open to spiritual things are just as likely to interact with an evangelist of darkness as with anyone carrying the message of the cross in today’s America.
Gen Z is one of the most spiritually open generations ever. A 2022 Barna study found that 46% of Gen Z is spiritually open, more than any other age group in the U.S. This means half of Gen Z is looking for peace and purpose that only comes from faith. That gives me great hope, because the consequence of a generation without much religious history that is spiritually open is incredibly positive.
Here’s the problem, though: if the church fails to show them the true supernatural, they will look for it in all the wrong places. In recent years, we’ve heard story after story of abuse of spiritual gifts to the point where many Spirit-filled believers shy away from identifying as such publicly out of fear. But we belong to a Spirit-filled faith. Every time there is a sign, wonder, or miracle, it testifies to the presence of Jesus. These miracles draw nonbelievers into direct interaction with the living God.
Abuse of the gifts should not cause their disuse. The solution to misuse is correct use. Signs and wonders in Acts drew seekers in droves adding many to the number of the church daily. This can happen again in our day. In the same way, Gen Z is drawn to Spirit-filled communities. So, sharpen the gifts God has given you. Whatever gift you operate in, don’t just operate in them at church. Take it with you wherever you go and share it with the members of Gen Z. If we empower them to meet the Father, the Spirit will indwell them—and they won’t leave empty-handed. Wouldn’t it be worth fighting for a generation to move from spiritually open to Spirit-filled?
Pray
Holy Spirit, fill me anew. Use me to reveal Your power and love so the next generation sees the beauty of Your presence.
Practice
• What fears or hesitations do you have about the supernatural?
• What spiritual gifts do you operate in? What do you need to do to stir up the gifts in you?
• How could you learn to “seamlessly move from the natural to the supernatural”?
• Who in your life could you pray with in faith for God’s intervention this week?