By: Pamela McCann, December 17, 2004

For: NRB Magazine Convention Issue 2005

As a marketer it’s my job to be on top of trends. To be able to read the market, understand what’s happening and to some extent, predict where it’s going. This year’s trending was dramatically impacted by the election cycle. Issues take on an almost unrealistic importance in the heat of battle particularly around presidential campaigns. Especially in this campaign. And whether we intend them to or not, issues in those campaigns have an impact on the programs that we produce, the advertising we create, and the fundraising tactics we use. Polarization along the lines that we saw in the campaign traditionally has been very beneficial for evangelical causes and ministries. It gets the support base vitalized and engaged.

As you look to the coming year, it’s important to understand that the gains you might have made in the political season may not be replicable. Building on this success will mean looking beyond the issues from the 2004 election. And there are some strong pointers for us as Christian broadcasters and ministry leaders. I’ll address just one.

One thing that is obvious in the aftermath of the election is that there is a definitive spiritual split in our culture. The strides that secularists have made in hemming in our spiritual culture has seemed at times alarming and at others simply annoying. But the split seems to be growing. This trend is of particular interest to anyone who’s read the social and historical studies of Strauss and Howe. Simply put, they maintain that there are four generational groups that appear in the same succession over the course of US history from 1584. Each of these four has names. Boomers happen to be in the category of “idealist” generations. According to Strauss and Howe’s thorough and thought provoking analysis, every time it appears, the “idealist” generation is responsible for setting the spiritual and moral tone of the nation for the next 100 years. They track every spiritual awakening in our nation’s history to the “idealist” generations as they occur.

They also state that in the “boomer” generation (our current “idealist” cycle) there is a definitive split along spiritual lines. In this idealist cycle (born 1943-1960) “early wave” boomers have been responsible for the spiritual awakening of the 70’s rooted largely in a wide concept of spiritualism and religion (new age type religious experiences, spiritualism that involves environmental concerns, the Jesus movement, etc.) “late wave” boomers are credited with the mega church phenomena – their focus is more on Biblical spiritual values as a rule. Of course you have those who are “early wave” (like our current President) who have the “late wave” characteristics – but for the most part the generation can been seen as split into these two categories.

What we experienced in this election – the bitter fighting, the strident tones, and the emotional intensity – was more than a battle over issues. It was in reality the bitter clash of these two groups for the literal future of our nation. In their 1991 study, Strauss and Howe predicted that “early wave” boomers might win this spiritual tug of war and that our next phase of development as a nation would be colored by a love of earth and the environment. That indeed our next war might be sending our young men and women to die in protection of the rain forest or some other environmental issue.

I don’t know about the spiritual state of these two researchers as far as their personal lives go. They don’t seem to be on one side or the other. This work is observational and analytical – and it is intriguing. But consider this, we might now be gearing up for the next great spiritual awakening in our nation. We are sure seeing the spiritual dynamics in play.

And we are seeing a trend toward Biblical values on a national scale. Runaway best selling books such as Prayer of Jabez, the Left Behind series and Purpose Driven Life are but one reflection of the spiritual hunger in our nation. There is a new and intense interest in spiritual issues, and in revival. There is a ground swell of new materials related to revival that will be hitting bookstores and airwaves this year. I believe this is a natural next step to the spiritual restlessness and hunger we are seeing among certain sectors of the culture. It appears that this interest will continue to grow over the next few years although it may be tinged by continued struggles with “idealists” who hold for a more secular orientation. The spiritual struggle could get more intense. As people in our nation seek God, we are in a particularly strong position to help them find Him. Let us commit as Christians to be the kind of people and have the kind of ministries that will point people to Him.

We need revival in our personal lives as well. Henry Blackaby’s book Holiness powerfully reminds us that we have to start with ourselves – not by looking at the outside things we might do. Our relationship with God has to be right. And that’s why our focus with Women in Christian Media (WCM) isn’t just revival for our nation, it’s personal revival too. In my role as Executive Director of WCM I come in contact with women all around the country at work in ministries, radio stations, television studios, publishers and agencies. Many of them have told me that they are longing for a new awakening in their hearts – to feel afresh the life of the Spirit flowing through them in their personal lives and at work. We know that when we get our lives on track, our work in ministry at any level takes on new meaning and we can engage with renewed energy knowing that there’s a significance to the calling we all have in ministry – no matter what our role may be.

That’s our prayer and theme for this year at WCM – and I think it might be a good theme for all of us. May God grant us revival in the depths of our lives and may it spill out into our families, churches, communities, cities, and world.

Footnote: Source William Strauss and Neil Howe, Generations the History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069, William Morrow and Company publishers, 1991.  

Pamela McCann is president of McCannGroup, a branding and marketing company specializing in the Christian market; and served as Executive Director of Women in Christian Media (WCM) a professional women’s organization.