(The Lion) — A pastor who travels the country and regularly speaks on college campuses says he believes America is experiencing a spiritual awakening, with people more open to the gospel than he’s ever seen.
Jonathan Pokluda is the lead pastor of Harris Creek Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, and a regular speaker at Unite US events, where thousands of students gather in massive arenas to worship and proclaim the name of Christ. The movement launched in September 2023 at Auburn University’s Neville Arena – the home of the school’s basketball team – but soon spread to other campuses.
This fall, it will make stops at the universities of Oklahoma (Sept. 9), South Florida (Sept. 25) and Tennessee (Sept. 30).
“Without a doubt, we are in the midst of a spiritual awakening. I have no hesitation to say revival,” Pokluda told The Lion.
A Unite US event at West Virginia University this year drew 5,000 students, with approximately 1,000 coming forward to make decisions for Christ. At Purdue University, 4,500 students filled the venue – and nearly half responded to the gospel message. At Ohio State University, 6,500 students gathered, and nearly 2,000 came forward.
“In the past 24 months, I have personally prayed with over 20,000 college students to receive Christ,” Pokluda said before quickly deflecting any credit.
“The ‘I’ there is interchangeable – it is nothing that’s me. It’s [simply the] right place, right time. The Holy Spirit is moving forward through college students, and I’ve never seen anything like it in my lifetime.”
But it’s not just college campuses, Pokluda added, before sharing a few personal examples of everyday gospel conversations.
“My daughter and I were just on the West Coast, and we were sharing the gospel with Uber drivers and security guards and servers at restaurants – and every single person was just so thankful. They were just like, ‘Thank you for that – that’s good news.’ And I was like, ‘It absolutely is.’”
The Unite US movement isn’t the only evidence of a possible spiritual movement.
Bible sales surged last year, climbing 22% overall, according to Circana BookScan. The publishing division of the Southern Baptist Convention also reported a 30% jump in sales. A Barna survey released in April found that 66% of U.S. adults say they’ve made a personal commitment to Jesus that remains significant in their lives – a 12-point rise since 2022 and the highest level reported since 2012. Meanwhile, Bible-based series The Chosen and House of David each jumped to No. 1 on Prime Video this year, leading all mainstream titles.
“He’s just opened the door everywhere,” Pokluda said.
