“We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the First.” – Oswald J. Smith.
In reality, it’s about a third of the world that has never heard. Of the seven billion people that call earth home, more than two billion of them have never heard the Good News. They are the Unreached. Of those, most live in areas that don’t have any kind of Christian presence, or at least not of sufficient numbers to possibly share that Good News. They’ve never seen a missionary or had access to one. They are the Unengaged Unreached.
One of the core values of Pioneers is to try to see that everyone has a chance to learn about Jesus for themselves. Their focus is sending missionaries to these Unengaged Unreached.
The videos paint a pretty dim picture. And I feel like I need to print a bit of a disclaimer. There is nothing wrong about missionaries going to serve among those who are already Christians. Paul reminds us that one plants, another waters, still another harvests. All of those roles need to be filled. Discipling new believers is vital. Training them to be missionaries themselves is vital. But discipling and training can’t happen without there being any initial contact. And two billion people right now have no need for discipling or training. They haven’t heard the Good News.
In the Isaan region of Thailand, there are some 21.5 million people. On average, 1 out of every 634 people in Isaan is Christian. In some provinces, the ratio is as high as 1 out of every 1303. If a thousand people in Isaan gathered to watch a football game, on a good day two would be Christian. Think of it this way. Visualize Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners. Safeco Field has a seating capacity of 47,860. If every one of these seats were filled with a person living in Isaan, 132 of them would be Christian. That doesn't even put one Christian in each section.
These are the Unengaged Unreached.
Isaan is the driest and poorest region in Thailand; all of Thailand’s ten poorest provinces are in Isaan. It has a history of being dominated and oppressed by various regimes over the last 800 years. It is a socially outcast area. It is looked down upon by Thai’s because of its Laotian and Cambodian influences. In Isaan, 70% of the population is considered impoverished.
We’re hoping to work at planting churches, finding people who are open to hearing the Gospel. This is not about going to convert or Christianize people. This is about going and telling them about who Jesus is. But also, we go to serve the people in the Name of Christ, following his mandate to care for “the least of these”.
Some are called to serve the church here, bringing Christ to their immediate sphere of influence. Some are called to serve the church in another part of this country, in another city or state. Some are called to go to those who have come to Christ, but who need to be trained in how to live their faith out. And some are called to bring the Good News to a place that it has never been. We believe that is where we are being called.
Will you help us get there?
