There are days you attend an event and leave with a few photos, a tired back, and maybe a samosa wrapped in a serviette for the road home. Probably because you were in such a rush that the guests couldn’t let you leave without a bite. Courtesy you know. Then there are days you walk into a gathering and somehow leave feeling like God reached into your chest cavity and started rearranging furniture. That was my experience at the Kenya Students Christian Fellowship rally held at Nairobi Baptist Church. A few hours with high school students, which has become a norm for me as one of my specific commissions.
Now let me confess something honestly. Sometimes older people tend to look at Gen Z with unnecessary suspicion – Pastor Chris included, CEO Chris included. We see funny haircuts, oversized hoodies, crocs 247, TikTok language, and mysterious hand signs in photos and immediately assume civilization is collapsing. Yet there I was, surrounded by young believers passionately worshipping Christ with a seriousness, enthusiasm, and sincerity that humbled me deeply.
These young people were gifted. My goodness… gifted. The singing was not the kind where everyone is confidently off-key but spiritually determined. No. These students could sing. Properly sing. Harmonies flying left and right. Instrumentalists commanding keyboards, drums, and guitars like seasoned worship ministers. Young people understanding timing, notes, transitions, and even more importantly, understanding the songs they were singing. Starehe girls kwanza did a rendition there for Oceans and I was in awe!
And for a moment I just stood there watching this generation worship God and quietly thinking, “Lord, perhaps the future of the Church is brighter than we imagine.” There is something powerful about seeing young people choose Christ willingly in a world aggressively discipling them away from Him. Babylon in full throttle out to finish a generation. It just upgraded from statues and empires to algorithms, trends, influencers, and carefully curated rebellion in the guise of freedoms, rights & wokeness.
Yet even in this modern Babylon, there are still Daniels. Young men and women deciding beforehand that they will follow God before temptation even arrives at the door. That was one of the strongest impressions I carried from the sermon by Rev. Ewagata. The message was titled Being Real While Being Holy, and honestly, it wasn’t one of those sermons you casually nod through while planning your lunch menu. No. This one came armed and dangerous.
Straight to the marrow. The foundation scripture was:
“because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’”
1 Peter 1:16 NKJV
Rev. Ewags, explained holiness not as religious performance but as God’s effort to move us from what sin had done to us into what Christ has done for us. That perspective alone shifted something in me. Holiness is not merely avoiding bad things. It is responding to the transforming work of Christ. And then he brought up Daniel and his friends.
What struck me was this: they chose holiness before crisis came. They had already made a decision to be different waaaaay before they encountered the challenges in Babylon. That is the part many of us ignore. We want emergency holiness. We want microwave righteousness. We want to live carelessly then suddenly become spiritual commandos when temptation arrives or when we are called upon to stand firm and represent. But spiritual consistency does not work like that. Among the illustrations He gave, was that of marriage. Most of us want to live a careless impure life of promiscuity and then we ask God to sanctify us at the last moment because now we are ready to “settle down”. Technically speaking, this lifestyle messes up the marriage even before you get married.
Muscle memory matters. The preacher referenced Psalm 119 vs 9 “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.” Then later: “With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You.” Psalms 119:10-11 NKJV
That phrase stayed with me all day: hidden in my heart. Because eventually life squeezes you hard enough and whatever is hidden inside comes out. If gossip is hidden inside, gossip comes out. If lust is hidden inside, lust comes out. If bitterness is hidden inside, bitterness comes out. But if the Word of God is hidden inside, even under pressure, Christ begins to emerge.
The preacher called it spiritual muscle memory. What is your default setting when life hits hard? Panic? Compromise? Prayer? Scripture? Withdrawal? Faith?
That question followed me around the entire afternoon like that unpaid Mshwari advance. One thing that became very clear throughout the sessions and discussions is that this generation is not looking for fake Christianity anymore. Young people can smell performance from very far away. They are not impressed by noise. They want authenticity. They want truth. They want leaders who genuinely walk with God beyond microphones and platforms. And perhaps that is why the words of Jesus felt so alive during the sermon:
“Then Jesus said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ They immediately left their nets and followed Him.”
Matthew 4:19-20 NKJV
The breakdown of that verse was beautiful.
Come: The Invitation. God calling ordinary people toward Himself. Salvation has always been an invitation before it becomes instruction. But the word “come” also implies separation. You cannot come toward Christ while stubbornly clutching everything pulling you away from Him.
Then Follow Me. That is where the discomfort begins. Everybody likes invitations. Commitment is where attendance suddenly drops. Following requires discipline. Correction. Surrender. The painful process of putting some things off and putting new things on. Modern Christianity often loves inspiration but struggles deeply with submission. Then came the part that hit the hardest:
“And I…” Jesus is the active One in transformation. Not self-help. Not image management. Not motivational quotes over piano music while you sleep. Christ Himself works in us.
“… will make you…” Process. Not instant perfection. The preacher compared it to how metal is refined through fire and friction before becoming something useful. How different parts of an engine are assembled piece by piece to make a moving mass and piece of perfection. Honestly, many of us want the polished version of ourselves without the heat necessary to produce it. We admire mature believers but avoid the disciplines that formed them: Prayer, Consistency, Obedience, Correction, Serving, Dying to self.
And finally, the commission: Fishers of men. Because a Christian without assignment eventually becomes a Christian consumed by unnecessary competition, comparison, and endless church politics. When believers lose mission, they start fighting each other over things that do not matter.
And then, and then… the matter of Revival came up. “Revival did not happen because men demanded revival. Revival happened because men followed the Lord with restless obedience.” – The following part.
Sometimes we talk about revival like it is a concert event God forgot to schedule. Yet throughout Scripture, revival followed consecration, repentance, obedience, prayer, and surrendered people. The atmosphere of that rally reflected that hunger. Young people asking serious questions, seeking counsel, worshipping passionately, listening attentively, somewhere in between all of it, I found myself deeply encouraged.
I left NBC reminded that the Church is still alive. Christ is still calling people. The Gospel is still transforming hearts. And there are still young believers choosing holiness in a generation where compromise is heavily sponsored. May we never become too cynical to see what God is doing among the young. May we never stop answering the invitation to “come.” May we never grow allergic to correction and may we never forget that before God uses people publicly, He first shapes them privately.
another grace note from a man still under construction
Grace & Peace ✌️