Young evangelicals raised for culture war
We grew up believing the threat was outside. We missed the threats from within.
When I was in high school, our youth group went to Acquire the Fire (ATF), a large youth rally held on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Led by Teen Mania Ministries founder Ron Luce, Acquire the Fire aimed to “build up an army of young people who will change the world.” Before going bankrupt and shuttering in 2015, ATF showed up in 33 cities and reached about 3 million people. I ended up going twice, the fire having not been sufficiently acquired the first time.
ATF featured many hallmarks of ’90s Christian teen gatherings. There were soaring praise choruses, inspirational talks, and skits drama ministry. ATF was where I saw my first “if you like this, you’ll like that” secular vs. sacred chart that switched out Blink 182 for Skillet and Alanis Morissette for Rebecca St. James. She was at ATF in 2001, singing her popular pro-purity ballad, “Wait for Me.”
ATF was where I felt convic…
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