Quiet?

We continue to see the outward signs of God moving among His people, and bringing new people into the Kingdom of God through a relationship with Jesus Christ.  The hope of the gospel is being demonstrated far and wide to counter a deep-seated sense of despair, and the presence of the Lord, as it always has been, is available to bringing hope and healing. The Bible says this in Malachi 4 (ESV), in the final chapter of the Old Testament:
1 For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.

Can we confidently say that the sun - the Son - of righteousness is rising?  There are pockets of hope that indeed the Lord is moving in powerful ways.

And, as the Bible Society in the UK had said several years ago as the result of survey data, there is a "quiet revival" reported among young people in that country.  However, a promising 2024 survey conducted by YouGov has been withdrawn, according to The Christian Post, which said the survey organization said recently "that it had re-analyzed its data collection. The research group found that the data sample for 'The Quiet Revival' report contained “a number of respondents who we can now identify as fraudulent.”

A previous Christian Post article had reported that YouGov's "report indicated that the proportion of adults in England and Wales who both identify as Christian and attend church at least once a month had risen from 8% in 2018 to 12% in 2024."  Also, "Among 18 to 24-year-olds, the figure reportedly increased from 4% to 16%, with more than a fifth of young men in that age bracket reported to be attending monthly — a particularly sharp rise. Women of the same age group were also reported to have increased attendance, from 4% to 12%."

So was, or is, this "quiet revival" fiction?  Paul Williams, CEO of The Bible Society is encouraged by data from other sources; The Christian Post related:

“This wider picture is also supported by a number of other surveys, based on probability sampling, which point to an increased engagement in faith among young adults compared to older generations,” the Christian CEO said.

Williams pointed to research such as the Ipsos MORI 2023 Global Religion Survey, which found that, on average across 26 countries, 40% say they believe in God as described in holy scriptures. Twenty percent said they believe in a higher power.

“While religious identity overall is shifting from ‘Christian’ to ‘no religion,’ Christianity in Britain appears to be moving from a declining nominal faith to a committed and active one, as cultural shifts — especially among younger people — encourage a more proactive search for identity, meaning and purpose,” Williams said, directing people to Bible Society’s new report, “The Quiet Revival one year on: what's the story?”

In his statement, Williams does admit that, "While religious identity overall is shifting from ‘Christian’ to ‘no religion’, Christianity in Britain appears to be moving from a declining nominal faith to a committed and active one, as cultural shifts – especially among younger people – encourage a more proactive search for identity, meaning and purpose."

But, there are trends that have emerged that can bring hope.  That report, "The Quiet Revival one year on: what's the story?” summarizes trends that it has tracked or observed:

That 4th trend is especially important: there is "a decline in nominal faith, and a growth in active faith."  

So, in the remnants of the discredited YouGov study, there are still reasons to believe that God is at work in the UK - and around the world, including the US.  But, there is a dichotomy out there between the professing believers who don't necessarily hold to a Biblical worldview and those who are living out what is called in that report an "active faith." George Barna has released a copious amount of data showing the disconnect among people who are nominal Christians and those who are not.  

We should always make sure that our lives are heading in that positive direction.  We should certainly guard against regressing in our Christian walk, but standing still - marking time - can lure us to think that we are OK spiritually, when we really are not.  Each day, we should be striving for signs of spiritual growth, and that comes through our personal time with God, which consists of prayer, time in the Word, and listening to the direction for the direction of the Holy Spirit, so that we can reflect His presence in our lives.  Out of our "quiet time" can grow a "quiet revival" that will turn up the volume on our Christian witness.