You should put that on TikTok!”

This is a common refrain among today’s teens. For them, every moment is potential content. Social media is not just entertainment, but the environment in which students live.

That understandably concerns parents and ministry leaders. As a youth leader and father of sixth-grade twins, I too worry about how social media is affecting young people.

Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” What we allow into our lives can change us at a heart level, shaping how we think and act.

For many students, nothing is more influential than the world on their screens. As of 2024, 90% of U.S. youth aged 13–17 used YouTube, according to Pew Research Center. Majorities also spent time on TikTok (63%); Instagram (61%); and Snapchat (55%).

Nearly half of teens (46%) reported being online “almost constantly,” up from 24% a decade earlier. And 48% said social media was negatively affecting users their age.

Those who disciple students cannot ignore these realities. Social media is shaping young people every day.

Yet there is reason for optimism. After all, our mission is to take the gospel everywhere, translating timeless biblical truths into contemporary contexts.

From the advent of the printing press to the rise of radio and television, the Church has long used the technology of its day to disseminate Christ’s message.

The question is not whether we should utilize social media for ministry, but how to enter digital spaces with wisdom, safety, and a pastoral heart.

I recently watched a video of an old Billy Graham crusade. The message was simple, urgent, and passionate.

What most captured my attention wasn’t the sermon, however, but the moment Graham looked into the camera and invited viewers to call a phone number if they wanted to accept Christ as Savior.

During the 1950s and ’60s, as many Christians were wrestling with whether television was too worldly, Graham embraced the opportunity to broadcast the gospel into living rooms. And viewers used rotary telephones when responding to altar calls.

Digital Discipleship

The debate over whether technology belongs in ministry is nothing new. The tools we use may change, but the mission of making disciples remains the same.

I understand the hesitation of some youth ministers to utilize social media. A 2023 advisory from the U.S. surgeon general warned of potential mental health risks associated with children and teens interacting with social media. Algorithms maximize engagement, not well-being.

Comparison culture on social media can damage self-esteem. I know of students whose entire sense of worth rises and falls with online “likes.”

Nevertheless, absence is not protection. Students are already on social media. The question is whether the Church will also be there, modeling the way of Christ.

Social media is not just a place to post announcements. Whether we recognize it or not, it is an environment for formation.

Algorithms track what users watch, like, and share, and then continually offer more of the same. Over time, this feedback loop reinforces ideas and behaviors. Yet it doesn’t necessarily encourage positive growth or character development.

What students celebrate, fear, or believe returns to their social media feeds again and again. That content might be harmless or deeply damaging, but it is certainly shaping them.

Youth leaders can’t control what students see online. What we can do is show up and demonstrate what it looks like to follow Jesus in a digital world.

We can also partner with parents and guardians as they establish boundaries and guide their teens toward right choices.

Teenagers know when the adults they care about are present and when they are absent. Presence matters more than we often realize.

Online Pastor

The acronym PASTOR — presence, ask, serve, train, open, and root — provides a helpful way to think about how youth leaders and families can utilize social media for discipleship.

The question is not whether we should utilize social media for ministry, but 
how to enter digital spaces with wisdom, safety, and a pastoral heart.

Presence means showing up where students are. This includes the digital spaces they use.

A steady and hopeful online presence communicates to students that their world matters to us.

Create youth ministry accounts on the platforms students frequent, such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.

Ask your students what platforms they use. Preferences shift over time, and the students in your ministry are the best sources on the subject.

Approach content creation from a parental perspective. Consider what kinds of content you would want your child to see from the church. Seek input and ideas from parents and guardians.

Provide digital safety resources, host parent nights, and equip families with tools they can use at home. Presence builds trust, and clarity improves safety.

Ask and listen with genuine curiosity.

Healthy discipleship begins with a willingness to learn. Ask students what they are seeing online. Invite them to talk about what content stood out to them recently and why. Inquire about which influencers students follow.

Listen without immediately offering advice or correction. When students feel safe sharing, they may be more open to spiritual conversations later.

Use content to serve, not just sell. Many church accounts look like digital billboards. Most students will just scroll past such content.

Think like a shepherd rather than a marketer. Post Scripture reflections that speak to feelings students may be experiencing, such as anxiety, insecurity, or loneliness.

Share short video clips that point young people toward Jesus. Highlight students taking steps of faith or serving others. Celebrate what God is doing in their lives.

When promoting events, connect them to purpose. Students respond to authenticity, not advertising.

Train students to use godly discernment online. Social media is shaping how students think about identity, truth, relationships, and worth. Ignoring that reality leaves a massive discipleship gap.

Give students biblical guidance for navigating social media. Paul’s instructions in Philippians 4:8 concerning healthy ways of thinking are extremely relevant for today’s digital world. Encourage students to consider how social media content is forming their thoughts about God, themselves, and others.

Open conversations through student engagement. Create posts asking what students want to learn or how your team can pray for them.

Feature stories and testimonies. Invite students to talk about how God met them at camp or during the hardest week of the school year.

Welcome parents into these conversations. Offer content they can use to engage teens in spiritual discussions on the way to school or around the dinner table.

Finally, root all of these efforts within genuine community. Social media can extend ministry opportunities, but it cannot replace in-person discipleship.

Use your online presence to point students back to worship gatherings, small groups, retreats, and serving opportunities.

Model healthy screen time limits. Encourage leaders and volunteers to put away phones to pray, worship, and engage in fellowship together. Normalize device-free spaces.

We don’t have to be social media experts to show up where students are and point them toward Jesus.

Platforms will change, but our God-given mission will not. Our calling is to love students enough to share not only the gospel, but our lives as well — both online and off (1 Thessalonians 2:8).

This article appears in the Winter 2026 issue of Influence magazine.