Live from Altars: Next Generation with Keithen & Mai

0:00Hey folks, John Tyson here. As you know earlier this year, we gathered here in New York City for our annual Alters Conference. And what we've heard over the last few days, the stories of what God's done has been incredible. We had leaders preach, word shaping, hunger inducing, scripture infused sermons. And we want to be able to make these sermons as widely available to as many people as possible so that they'll be a blessing to you and your church. Alongside that, we recorded some deeper conversations with the people who taught and some other key voices around the themes of prayer and revival going deeper into their stories. And these conversations are going to be available through the Awakened Network and you can find out more at AwakenNetwork.com. And we're excited to announce tickets for Alters 2027 are available now. We're back here in New York. Last year, they sold out quickly. So if you want to be with us, get your tickets today. I hope these talks and gathering together will be a blessing to you and your church. See you with

1:05Alters. Hey, you're listening to the Awakened Network podcast. And this is Zach Mirkriebs, one of the friends of John and Sam. In this episode, we are live at Alters Conference in New York City. You're going to hear some noise, some laughter. That's because we're just kind of backstage with our family. And that's our heart for AwakenNetwork is just to continue to create spaces for family pursuing awakening, multiplying vessels and Alters. Today, you're going to hear from someone who has spoken at conference and we're just going to kind of double click on their topic. So I hope you enjoy and we hope to see you soon. Hey, y'all Zach Mirkriebs here. I am losing my voice because we are at Alters Conference and and the first night I was singing too loud. So praise god, you're going to hear a lot from

2:07Keith and in my. So thanks for listening. We do have two of my dearest friends. It's awesome to do this with all the brilliant, gifted, unbelievable, you know, to hear from John and Sam. But I am selfishly very excited to be with like a brother and sister and for you to hear their heart specifically for the emerging generation. So tell us about yourselves. My take it away. All right. My name is Mai Tyson. I'm originally from Brazil. I had the privilege of encountering Jesus when I was 18 and met Jesus in college and my life just turned upside down. Now I get to live in New York City and be married to Nate Tyson, incredible, incredible man of god. Love Jesus so much. It's a heart for young men and we're expecting our baby boy, Judah. And we'd love prayers for him. I love that. So good. And I hope to run the land of your school alongside Keith and the church of city and do a good network. Yeah. So good. And what's up everybody? My name is Keith and

3:11Sean. And I live here in New York, but I'm not from New York. I grew up in Wyoming, which is like an hour east of Yellowstone, which is a great place in the country to be from. Then I spent a decade in Portland, Oregon and moved to New York four years ago to launch a youth ministry, a college ministry. And now we're working on some other resources, discipleship school stuff for college students. Come on. Yeah. It's awesome. There really is no one out there that I feel is contextualizing all this awakening, revival, prayer, contextualizing that for high schoolers and young adults, in a way that's not uncomfortable and itchy. There's no one out there like these two. So I'm really excited for you to listen to this and really ask that question. Okay. The lead pastor, the youth pastor, the mom, the dad, wherever you're at, like you might be sitting in your

4:12office or in your primary, I'm like, okay, I can carry this. How do I get my teenager to carry this? Yes. How do I get the little like young adults group or young professionals group? This is the episode. So Keith, and tell us a little bit about what you've been up to. You can talk about Lampere, you can talk about. What do you think? Yeah. How does that look like? Yeah. Well, that is my passion. And I think, you know, the Pew Research data on, for the first time in generations, we have a bump in people saying, I am affiliating with Fallen Jesus, which is like incredible. But if you also, if you scroll down on the research a little bit further, they did a poll on the prayer lives of the people that are the new converts. And what it says is that for Gen Z, young people that were born, the window of polling was between the year 2000 and 2006. And it says that their prayer life, only 27% of these new converts are praying daily. So there's just a massive gap.

5:13I think that, yeah, what we're seeing, like I love to celebrate all that God is doing. But I think if we just celebrate that young people are coming back to attending church, but we're not creating deep lives of prayer in their spirit, then we've just like, we've called revival just attendance, not revival, like a spirit of a young person coming alive in God. And I'm even like right now, something that I've been passionate is what's going around emerging, emerging generations, is people are getting excited about these prayer and worship gatherings? Yes, as they should be. But that's interesting that that's not translating to being a prayerful person daily pursuit of God. Yes. And so I think I'm just I'm wounded that that statistic would would rise and that the people that are now these new, like God is moving on the earth, like there is an interest, there's a spiritual openness like never before. But I'm wounded that these people would actually know God, because it's one thing to rock up to something. Like I think young people, if there's momentum,

6:14if there's energy, like people want to, they're curious to check things out. But the thing that sustains a move of God over time is the depth of their devotion to Jesus himself. And so that's, I mean, when we talk about prayer, like prayer is not like folding your hands and trying to get teenagers to close their eyes and look to the ground and give religious speeches to the sky, like that's not it at all. Prayer is coming alive in relationship with God that permeates through all of life. So when we talk about trying to help young people engage in prayer, that's what we're about. Come on. Do you want to add anything? What's burning in your soul? Why are you doing this work? Just the piece of faithfulness. I think I experienced a really rapid growth in the Lord after coming to him, to knowing him in college. And I can see how that zeal could have easily turned into either spiritual pride or just something that fizzes out without having the tools and the understanding of a long-term relationship with Jesus.

7:15Yes. And it became for me about running fast versus running long. I think the understanding of prayer and zeal can be prepared with and just so beautifully matched into a long run. This is a lifetime of following Jesus. This is a lifetime of being around him. So how do we translate that into the daily lives of young people? Yeah. It's interesting because hearing both of you guys, I think of what we were talking about earlier about how the school that you guys have designed, the original title was zeal and faithfulness. Zeal and faithfulness. Which is like oozing out of you guys. As you're talking about what's burning in your heart, you ended up naming this school where there's a geographical like contextualized one in New York City, but also an online one that I'm grateful to be a part of, called the Lamphere School. So share a little bit about that. Yeah. So the vision with the Lamphere School was exactly that that we wanted to give an

8:16opportunity for people to be raised up in passion and in zeal for the pursuit of God. I think that Awaken Network is really great at that. So it's an honor to be a part of it of just calling people to a higher vision. Like you can experience more of God than you're currently experiencing. And the lie I think that we've told the Western Church for so long is that you will have a level of young zeal and excitement for God when you're like a middle school or high school or college student. And that the rest of your Christian life is just kind of trying to tend to and manage the decline of that zeal throughout the rest of your life until you're an old person that kind of a shell of themselves, but you remember fondly back on your young days. And I just think that's such a lie. Like the old men and women that I'm around that I'm stirred by have the same fire in their eyes and love for Jesus that they did as a teenager. I mean that's, John has spoken to our students and he said, I am nothing but a 17 year old kid that experienced the power of God

9:17that has not let the culture of youth camp die in my spirit. And I'm like, that's that's it. So so on one hand, we wanted to create an environment where college students are are not just like brought into environments where they can have like pizza and chat with each other. It's like that's that's fine. But I'm so concerned about do you have a level of vision for your life that that takes the passion of your youth, but then pairs it with like character formation and an intentional process that this flame doesn't fizzle out. But the older that they get them, the more into the careers and vocations that they have, they keep that they keep that flame alive. So the Lamphere School, the reason we called it the Lamphere School for those of you that are revival history nerds on the call. Jeremiah Lamphere was the leader of the businessmen's revival in 1857, sweeping move of God. Some historians refer to it as the third awakening. But it was this incredible move of God that started through a prayer gathering on Fulton Street here in New York City. And

10:21Jeremiah Lamphere wasn't he wasn't a pastor like he wasn't clergy. The thing that that was so striking about this move of God in 1857 is that it was lay led. It was run by businessmen. And so I was like, okay, so we have the spiritual heritage of a man who doesn't have any special stand. He was single throughout his whole life. He was working on Wall Street and he just became burdened with I feel that God's called me to be a missionary to the business sector to Wall Street. And so why we named it after him is because we see college students in our city that are at Columbia, at NYU, at Fordham, musicians and dancers at Juilliard. Like we've got just the incredible institutions of our city. But the kind of a missional discipleship that is often reserved for like gap years or seminary or whatever. We're like, what if we could give that to college students to then send them as missionaries into their industries? Yeah, and that's like burning in you because when we

11:24first met, you were talking about almost word for word, how do we implant that into New York City and send them into their fields unpack that from your perspective? Yeah, honestly, so much of that was born out of my own dissatisfaction coming back from the mission field and realizing that I didn't know how to translate the tools that I use in the mission fields and in developing countries into a highly secular academic environment in New York City. I was just I was like, Lord, I have I do not know how do I translate those tools? How do I reach these students? I have so much love for them. I'm receiving an impartation and burden of your heart. I have no idea how to do this in a way that isn't with developing nations. And just in prayer and sitting with the Lord and dreaming up, okay, how do we contextualize that type of missionary training that is so marked by zeal in context like YOM and circuit riders? And we translate that in a way that is maintainable during college context like New York City. So it looked like really just dissecting curriculum for some of it and thinking, okay, how do we turn prayer into a normal part of the

12:30life of college in New York City, which is so busy? Yes. Students are usually you're thinking of highly ambitious, highly driven people from all over the world that come to New York with a dream and an ambition and a pursuit. What if that was directed towards the kingdom? What if we're not forming the top actors of the world? If we're not topping the top musicians of the world, we're actually forming the top missionaries of the world that are sent into their industries. So that was a lot of the dreaming of how to translate that into a discipleship environment in New York City. So if you're listening to the podcast at this point, you're probably turned up to speed on the on the treadmill because you want to run through a brick wall after listening. If you're driving to school or drop off your kids, you probably have sped through the school zone. You're fired up. Let's go practical. Sure. What does it look like? Could you give some practicals on if they're leading ministry, if they want to say if they have a

13:31living room and they're near college campus, what can they possibly start? Yeah, like get practical. What does it look like? Well, how do you encourage them? Well, I would say everybody's in the game of forming young people. Like if we are following actors, say that again. Yeah. So everybody that's a disciple of Jesus is in the game of forming young people. There's not a certain personality type or a positional authority that you need to invest in the next generation. Like we're all in. And so what you're saying, if I have a living room and I have any relational equity with any young person or you just want to like ask God to open doors to get to know young people in your context, I would say like open, like just open your life to them. So part of it is we feel this pressure because we've created church environments that are like experts speaking at the front of a room to an auditorium. So a lot of people feel like if I don't have the chops to do that, then I can't

14:31form young people. And I just think it's such a misnomer. A lot of Jesus ministry, like if you look percentage wise, was conversations with religious leaders, forming young people, and then a little bit of public speaking and like a healing ministry. Like it was like, you know, so I would just say like get people into the game. Yeah. What would be a huge thing. I think a lot of people disqualify themselves from having the tools to do anything here. Yeah. So that would be that would be first. The other thing in the practicals is I think we need to rise our expectations of what's possible. And if we, have you heard of the pig million effect before? Yeah. So your expectations of the people that you lead often shape the kind of outcomes that you're going to get. So if in our minds, we say young people don't want to pray, young people are deconstructing, young people are lost, and you know, we'll never find God, then we enter into relationships with those expectations and we get those outcomes. So I'm like, what, what if the people of God just started to expect that there is a spiritual openness, which statistically there is and that you can actually call

15:35these people to come and die and give their life to the, to the call of Jesus in their context and that you watch them actually like step up and rise to that. That's been the thing that has shocked me. I was like, we started this discipleship school in New York with some of the most busy driven people that are focused on their industry. And with a high call, a high bar of discipleship and the people that have said yes and risen to the occasion has shocked me, honestly. I didn't see it coming. I think maybe in my like biggest faith I did, but not in like the practical. And so, yeah, those are a few things for me. Anything for you, my? Yeah, I think of kind of a threefold. First, just get your face on the floor, inner seating. Yeah, that's so bad. I think it's to get a heart. You just got to be, um, inner seating for them. Part two would be get in the zone. I give you're able to and your college campuses allow for people to just walk around campus, not in a creepy way. Just go there and look at the college students

16:35in the face. See who the people you're praying for are exactly. Yeah, like get yourself in the context that you're praying for. Um, I think some of the sweetest things that we've gotten to do with Lampier is come to college campuses and we did that with college. I know I see even before Lampier existed. Let's go to college campuses. Let's intercede in the place. Let's get this ground marked for the Lord. And then the third piece would be bring people along with you. I think my most smart game. Do it with friends receiving. Yes. Also receiving discipleship has been when mentors just say, Hey, do you want to come pick up laundry with me? And as we're doing that, they're praying, imparting their heart of discipleship and prayer in me. And I'm learning that as we go. So it doesn't have to look complex. It doesn't even have to look like a classroom environment. Bring them into your life. Yeah. As I'm listening to you guys and by joy, you know, joy of my life, I've been doing ministry alongside college campuses. My whole vocation while ministry. So small Bible college, then one of the most liberal schools in the south. And I was planning the

17:41church. Like it didn't make sense to the go volunteers. But when I hear about what you're saying and just something that I've said to a lot of people that have a heart for young adults or college campuses, you know, the word says where your treasure is, your heart is also. Oh, dude. I also challenge leaders where your calendar is. Your heart is also where you wall it is. Your heart is also. Yeah, where you're, yeah. Like if you look at your calendar, and it's all meetings in your church, church building, your heart is also there, which is not wrong. It's not a bad thing. But if your heart is for college students or college campus near you or young adults, use your calendar to make, you know, it really isn't that actually financially expensive. You can just order pizza, you know what I mean? But it is timely. It's time expensive. You have uniquely availability, accessibility, you know, so yeah, but I'd say that to that, like we know that the things that are

18:47worth the most to us that we would pay the cost any day, any time, you know, and we've all maybe, maybe as we land the plane before, before two prayers, I feel, and to lead us in is, could we give a shout out to the one person you think of who did what we're longing more people do? Who was the person who did that for you, Keith? And who was the person who did that for you, my, like keep it short and sweet. But like, hey, I'm praying, like for me, I'm praying for more Alan Briggs who showed up to my soccer game when I was in high school right after giving my life to Christ, started taking me to get JBCs at Wendy's in Colorado Springs and then gave me a job when I was 18 and dropped out of college because I was curious about school ministry. Like we need more lives. Like who do we need? Who is the person? Yeah. For me, Brooke Moser, the guy in Portland,

19:49Oregon, when I was living there, and he saw my zeal, but he also helped me just develop a life of faithfulness. And I think even like my vision for this is so marked by that relationship. And just someone who like he, he was a busy man, like with a lot on his plate in life and ministry and family. And he just chose, like you said, the costly sacrifice of time with a young leader that it didn't benefit him anything practically to do that. Yeah. So much of my life is a fruit of that investment. It's the same. Brooke Moser. Yeah. We need more Brooke Moser's life. Yes, we do. Right. And we need more Meg Kelsey's. Meg Kelsey's the one who invested in me. My mentor, when I first moved to New York and she opened her home, she left her apartment door unlocked in New York City. So we could come in any time and just invited me and she was cooking dinner for her young boys and just had hosted all these college students in her home in her living room to worship as her kids were running away from bedtime. She took me to get laundry with her and just taught me

20:50the power of prayer. Every walk with her became a prayer walk. And still does, if I see her for five minutes, we are praying for four and a half of those minutes and we're just saying bye for the other 30 seconds. She's early here. Yeah. I think the two prayers I want to pray is I would love Keith and if you if you would pray an activation prayer. Yeah, absolutely. Like like really that like that real spirit of impartation and activation of someone who's listening. Great. And then we're going to close praying for you guys and what you guys carry. I do want to just reiterate that what you've heard is gold. And God knows your frame. Yes. And he knows what you're facing. So I love the original name for this program. Zeal and Faithless. So if if you are listening to this and Zeal has gone off the us or out the roof. Also know that there's faithfulness

21:54to what you're currently doing right now. Faithless to what they've asked you to do. Faithfulness to raise your kids or be an unbelievable employee as gospel witness. We're at there's faithfulness. But God will show you what to do with the zeal as well. So Keith and will you pray like a yeah impartation activation. And then I'll lead us in prayer for you too. Yes. I still love to come Holy Spirit. Thank you for every leader that's listening to this every person that is aching for revival and awakening that listens to this podcast. God, thank you for them. And Lord, we just ask that you would turn their heart toward the future of the church. God, would you help us help us know how to form young people? God, would you just give us vision for our lives like the best witness to the upcoming generation is men and women with years, wisdom, experience, gray hair with fire in their eyes and joy in their spirit. Though God, I just pray

22:58for an impartation of the mission of God, your mission, your heart for the future of the church to just be imparted across this call. And God, I just pray for small steps. Lord, if it's every person listening to this, it's just one young person comes to mind. God, bring that young person to mind. Lord, I just pray for a generation of pastors and leaders in the church, lay people in the church that will pay the cost to form the future of the church, Lord. Thank you. Thank you for what you're doing across the earth right now, God. Would you, would you pair the zeal of the young people that are returning in faith to you? How would you pair that with lifelong faithfulness through being mentored, cared for in the life of the church, God? We love you. And right now, if you're driving or whatever, don't close your eyes. But would you, as I pray for my two friends, would you pray? Maybe it's even out loud or to yourself for Keith and in my and what they carry. So Jesus, thank you for my thanks for this little sister in the Lord. Yes. Thank you

24:04for the fire that she carries. She really does live out that second Corinthians 4.7. She has this treasure in a jar of clay. Thank you for her meekness. I thank you for her vision. I thank you for what you've deposited in her. Thank you for bringing her to New York City into this, the Tyson family, but also into this calling Lord. Thank you. I pray that you make a way for her. I pray for every provision need to be met for protection. I pray for their growing family. I pray that anything that Nate and I have experienced would not be the ceiling of their son, but would be the floor. Yes. I pray right now that you give her wisdom and to discernment on her ministry, on anything that feels stuck, will it get unstuck? Anything that feels unclear, make it clear. Lord, use her in a mighty way. We bless her as two big brothers in the Lord. We just bless her.

25:09And just thank you for Keith and thank you for the mantle that he's carrying. Thank you that he's received a mantle, I believe, for the global church to translate and contextualize and encourage that Gen Z isn't just talked about. Gen Alpha isn't just on slides, but they are participants in what you're doing. Thank you, God. We wouldn't leverage their stories, Lord, to make us feel better and get more people to per meetings, but they would be invited to lead per meetings. That we wouldn't preach sharing the research, but we would let them preach and share their stories. So, Jesus, right now, I pray right now for my brother that you would sustain him, that you would give him gifts, new gifts, Holy Spirit, pray for protection over him and his family, Lord. Jesus, I pray for their growing family, that it would be health, pray that you assign new angels to him. And Jesus, would you strengthen his frame? Would he broaden his spiritual

26:13shoulders? Would you give him laser focus? Jesus, would you give him clear eyes and ears to hear what you're asking to do? And Jesus, would he always be able to see your face? Would there never be anything hindering him and lock your eyes with you? Jesus, I pray right now for the young the young men and women under his care. I pray that you would activate them and call it into full vibrancy and participation in mission. Jesus, we thank you for the ability to have this conversation. We thank you for alters and what you're doing in the other room right now. We pray you're blessing over it. Breathe on it, Lord. I pray for the Gen Z in the room right now that's gets activated. And we hear stories of 20, 30 years from now. So, bless us, Lord. Would we pass the ball to the next generation? Will we not be spiritual ball hogs in Jesus' name? Amen. Amen. Hey guys, thanks for listening. I hope it was encouraging and equipping. If it is encouraging,

27:18jump on AwakenedNetwork.com. If you want to be in this community, we have a membership for you. We have these Awakened Leadership one days where we'll talk about topics like this one, leave a review, share, all that podcast stuff. But God bless you guys. Inglation69 says, do not grow weary in doing good. For in due time, you'll re-put you so if you don't lose heart.