About Us

For a unified movement of diverse organizations, denominations and networks that though they might not agree on everything but could stack their hands on two major themes: Jesus and young people.

While the good news of Jesus Christ is the hope for all generations, over one million young people who are raised in Christian homes are likely to disaffiliate from Christianity each year between now and 2050.

That potential, as well as that problem, fueled a December 2018 youth ministry gathering funded by the Pinetops Foundation with 15 denominational leaders, 25 organizational leaders, and 5 funders. During that 48 hours, leaders wrestled together with two questions:

For the next 6 months, the leaders of Fuller Youth Institute (FYI) prayed about this call and its implications, and concluded that God was leading them to serve as the backbone organization for what became known as the TENx10 Collaboration. The mission of the TENx10 Collaboration is to help faith matter more for 10 million young people in the next 10 years—in the spirit of John 10:10.

At the end of 2019, TENx10 convened a second summit with 30 leading youth ministry scholars and practitioners, national denominational and organizational leaders, and current and potential funders. Through both large and small group discussion, that summit affirmed 2 key principles:

At the beginning of 2020, TENx10 conducted research on youth formation, analyzed priorities in youth discipleship among organizations serving youth, and gathered feedback from local youth leaders and national thought leaders. This process identified 7 Discipleship Emphases that fuel relational youth discipleship. While TENx10 has continued to refine these Discipleship Emphases with input from over 75 practitioners, organizational representatives, thought leaders, and scholars, they remain the core content skeleton of TENx10.

Given the COVID pandemic of 2020 and 2021, TENx10 launched multiple online gatherings and forums to deepen relationships with organizational and denominational leaders as well as current and potential funders. In addition, TENx10 leaders established a core Project Leadership Team that is now comprised of representatives from the Asian American Christian Collaborative, Fuller Youth Institute, Life.Church, Lilly Endowment, the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, Orange, Princeton Seminary, Pinetops Foundation, Urban Outreach Foundation, and Youth for Christ.

Also in 2021, TENx10 launched and tested pilot resources and training (including a video-driven online Masterclass) with diverse clusters of practitioners and partners across the US. The leaders who tested the resources were especially appreciative of help in developing volunteers and growing their own faith, and asked TENx10 to develop future resources that were even more “turnkey” and grounded in the daily realities of bivocational/volunteer leaders of color.

At the start of 2022, TENx10 established greater structural and missional clarity by highlighting its 4 primary strategic objectives.

1. Raise youth discipleship to a top priority for US ministry leaders by generating national prayer and awareness, as well as advocacy among senior leaders.
2. Given both our Scriptural convictions about diversity and inclusion as well as the demographic realities of today’s young people, TENx10 will pay disproportionate and appropriate attention to the insights, needs, and realities of communities of color.
3. Curate, create, and disseminate core resources and training that embody the Discipleship Emphases and equip local ministry leaders to enact lasting change.
4. Connect and mobilize partner organizations to collectively impact 100,000 diverse faith communities nationally.

In February 2022, TENx10 held a Collaborators Summit, which convened 140 leaders from TENx10’s 60 partners (approximately 20 denominations, 35 training organizations, and 5 funders). This was a significant moment for TENx10 where we made the strategic decision to center leaders of color. We believe this to be a gospel decision to better reflect the Kingdom as well as our country. This decision continues to shape how we work and lead today.

Toward the end of 2022, God provided a $10.7 million 4-year grant through the Lilly Endowment, which enabled the TENx10 team to grow from 8 to 14 members, and expand to a $5 million annual budget for 2023-2025.

On October 10, 2023, we publicly launched TENx10 with over 100 national partners. We celebrated the release of our new website, a suite of resources and a celebratory Summit with almost 300 partners and leaders in Chicago. It was incredible!

Today, TENx10 continues to grow, and our impact continues to expand. With more than 130 partners, we’re gathering with leaders all over the country, and we continue to hear stories of growth and impact.

2025 is all about YOU! We are inviting all parts of the Church to join our work and reimagine how we can form the faith of young people–together! We can’t wait to see what God will do going forward.