World Missions in Your Own Backyard – Ron Lewis
September 9th, 2008 by KPIC AdminComing up with the title for this column was the only challenging part of writing this. It also could have been titled, “You’ll Never Need a Passport Again to Do the Great Commission,” or “An Idiot’s Guide to World Missions: Step Outside.” Is it the creative strategy of God that has brought the nations of the world to us, or is it the mercy of God because so many of us would rather barbecue in the backyard than suffer through a degrading coach class ticket to Swaziland? Whatever it is, God has brought the world to us and “expanding our tent pegs” has never been easier.
The demographics shaping our cities today are ever changing. Census data released in the middle of 2008 shows that within one generation from now, America’s traditional white majority will comprise less than 50% of the total US population. This shift may make some uncomfortable, but for those of us who carry the nations in our hearts, it is our golden opportunity. We can fire up the grill in our backyard and do world missions at the same time. I have one word for this, “Hallelujah!”
Consider the Hispanic influx. US Census data predict that this population is going to more than double in the next 30 years. I believe that every evangelical church in America should have a plan to reach this demographic for Jesus. At KPIC in Durham, NC, we responded by partnering with one of my good friends who is a great Hispanic pastor from another State. Now every Sunday night, Hispanic and Hispanic-American people are being changed. It’s now a full-blown church plant called Celebracion Hispana. It doesn’t even resemble our church name, but honestly, who cares? People are joining us and most importantly names are being written in the Book of Life. Names like Jose, Carlos, Juanita and other beautiful names that come from the South (yes, further SOUTH than Alabama).
The US college and university systems are a huge attraction to the nations. Increasingly, the world’s parents are making major sacrifices to send their young men and women to America to get a better start. I happened to cross paths with one such student from Taiwan. At first he liked our people a lot more than our God. Eventually he came to a real faith in Jesus. While taking a scouting trip to China together in the late 90s, we “accidentally” led several Chinese to Christ. Right in our hotel room we held meetings and then did baptisms in the bathtub. Disciples were being made and a need for leadership arose. Eventually this man and his wife left behind their prestigious professorships in Taiwan to start churches in many cities of China. With the thousands of Chinese who have since been reached, it stuns me to think how effective this couple has become in Asia. Yet all I did was show him love and answer his questions about the Bible when he was a student in the US.
Finally, more and more the Western Church is being called to engage in global social justice issues. I sometimes feel embarrassed that Bono, and even Madonna, are more up on these issues that we seem to be. AIDS, orphans, and child trafficking are major global crises that can be addressed by even the smallest church with limited resources.
For me it began a few years ago as I received an impression to help the well-known African Children’s Choir find a base home in North Carolina. After a year of rallying our church and city, we now have six acres and two large homes where 25 orphans and multiple chaperones live and take refuge from a busy touring schedule. These children have touched our city and continue to remind us of the plight of millions who have lost their parents to HIV and disease.
The days of associating world missions as a two-month voyage on a ship crossing the Atlantic are long gone. Today’s church is able to impact the world right from where we are. So fire up the grill… the world is waiting.
