Friends,

In this issue we are excited to present you with the conclusion of The RELATE Project and what we’re learning about this current generation of young people.

I have greatly appreciated reading through the report and hearing how Gen Z views relationships — with themselves, others, and God. It’s been fascinating to learn from the 7,261 adolescents surveyed, especially given that they hail from eight different countries: Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mexico, Tanzania, Uganda, the United Kingdom, and the United States. (In the magazine we have looked at the results collectively, but if you’d like a further geographical breakdown you can find it at relate.younglife.org.)

Another important note: These adolescents, aged 13 to 24, come from the general population, not from Young Life. The study is not influenced by our beliefs, which is especially helpful to remember in the sections that look at Gen Z’s views on faith.

Back in our spring issue, we looked at part one of the study. This issue gives us a 30,000-foot view of the remaining sections, focusing even more on who Gen Zers are and their relationships — both online and in person.

Also in this issue our friends at Axis, a ministry uniquely focused on studying the world of adolescents, speak into this generation’s social media presence; specifically, the role of content creation versus content consumption.

Why take so much “real estate” in this magazine to look into this study? Because we love Gen Zers, and know our heavenly Father loves them even more. We want to know them deeply, and all that is on their hearts.

And we want to introduce them to the One who loves them even more than we do. It is one of the many reasons that we spend time with Jesus, so we can know him more deeply and what is on his heart. Then we can give a proper account of him, in both word and deed, to our young friends. We talk about this further in “The Last Word” on page 22.

We are excited to hear your thoughts about the findings, and any further questions you might have regarding both the study and our approach going forward. Please contact us at relate@sc.younglife.org.