Doable Discipleship
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Gen Z and the Church with Tanita Maddox
September 16, 2025
“The next generation will live into the words we speak over them, so we should consider what words we are speaking over Gen Z. We, older generations, are responsible for raising, stewarding, and discipling the next generation, and right now, they are hearing from us, “We don’t like you.” - An excerpt from What Gen Z Really Wants to Know About God.
We’re in a bit of a tale as old as time moment. There is a lot of discussion about Gen Z - and a lot of it negative. Honestly this seems like a not uncommon issue where older generations speak negatively about younger generations, but there is something that does seem different about the conversation surrounding Gen Z. Gen Z is considered the first digital native generation and there is data to show a decline in church engagement in Gen Z. As I read from the excerpt earlier, there is a narrative in place that Gen Z is lazy, difficult, and weak. But what if we flipped the narrative? What if we approached Gen Z with hope and optimism, maybe even appreciation for what we can learn from them? Gen Z isn’t just the future of the church, it’s the church today so how can we think of and approach Gen Z differently than the prevailing narratives.
My guest today is Dr. Tanita Maddox, national director at Young Life and author of the new book What Gen Z Really Wants to Know About God. In this conversation, we talk about who Gen Z is, how they think, the relationship between Gen Z and the church, and why we should not only be hopeful about Gen Z but even see them as a brave, resilient generation.
Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).
Resources Related to This Episode:
https://www.amazon.com/What-Really-Wants-Know-About-ebook/dp/B0DT5J9QZM?ref_=ast_author_dp
Subscribe to the Doable Discipleship podcast at Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/doable-discipleship/id1240966935) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/1Zc9nuwQZOLadbFCZCmZ1V)
Related Doable Discipleship Episodes:
The Man You're Meant to Be - https://youtu.be/Zrn5ws4rFec
The Urgency of Grace in a Worn Out World with David Zahl - https://youtu.be/kiOQU4TO3QU
Living with Hope in the Midst of Struggle with Alan Noble - https://youtu.be/99Nki49V0fI
Delighting in Jesus with Asheritah Ciuciu - https://youtu.be/nHFPW4QLc9s
Embracing Brokenness with Michael John Cusick - https://youtu.be/Wzky80I2lPw
Mysteries of Faith: Prayer - https://youtu.be/9rFBmBKiNxI
Living Hope with Phil Wickham - https://youtu.be/1U_aetP2H0M
Longing for Joy with Alastair Sterne - https://youtu.be/HNXAl4wTmIc
Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA
We’re in a bit of a tale as old as time moment. There is a lot of discussion about Gen Z - and a lot of it negative. Honestly this seems like a not uncommon issue where older generations speak negatively about younger generations, but there is something that does seem different about the conversation surrounding Gen Z. Gen Z is considered the first digital native generation and there is data to show a decline in church engagement in Gen Z. As I read from the excerpt earlier, there is a narrative in place that Gen Z is lazy, difficult, and weak. But what if we flipped the narrative? What if we approached Gen Z with hope and optimism, maybe even appreciation for what we can learn from them? Gen Z isn’t just the future of the church, it’s the church today so how can we think of and approach Gen Z differently than the prevailing narratives.
My guest today is Dr. Tanita Maddox, national director at Young Life and author of the new book What Gen Z Really Wants to Know About God. In this conversation, we talk about who Gen Z is, how they think, the relationship between Gen Z and the church, and why we should not only be hopeful about Gen Z but even see them as a brave, resilient generation.
Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).
Resources Related to This Episode:
https://www.amazon.com/What-Really-Wants-Know-About-ebook/dp/B0DT5J9QZM?ref_=ast_author_dp
Subscribe to the Doable Discipleship podcast at Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/doable-discipleship/id1240966935) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/1Zc9nuwQZOLadbFCZCmZ1V)
Related Doable Discipleship Episodes:
The Man You're Meant to Be - https://youtu.be/Zrn5ws4rFec
The Urgency of Grace in a Worn Out World with David Zahl - https://youtu.be/kiOQU4TO3QU
Living with Hope in the Midst of Struggle with Alan Noble - https://youtu.be/99Nki49V0fI
Delighting in Jesus with Asheritah Ciuciu - https://youtu.be/nHFPW4QLc9s
Embracing Brokenness with Michael John Cusick - https://youtu.be/Wzky80I2lPw
Mysteries of Faith: Prayer - https://youtu.be/9rFBmBKiNxI
Living Hope with Phil Wickham - https://youtu.be/1U_aetP2H0M
Longing for Joy with Alastair Sterne - https://youtu.be/HNXAl4wTmIc
Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA
