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“This is what I call a target rich environment.”
I wasn’t channeling my inner Pete Mitchell (call sign “Maverick”). It’s what comes to mind when I’m out and about. Then I think, Seventy-five percent of the people I encounter today are open to a spiritual conversation.That fits Urban Dictionary’s definition of a target-rich environment.[1]
Definition: A combat situation in which an attacker, normally equipped with a superior weapons system, is presented with a large number of highly desirable, poorly defended and high-value targets all at once.
A couple of recent incidents reinforced the fact that Christians on mission indeed live in a target-rich environment. We’re armed with superior weapons (Ephesians 6:10–17). Despite what we may think, we’re surrounded by a large number of highly desirable targets, people who need to hear about and believe in Jesus.
Unchurched people welcome spiritual conversations
The first incident happened during a recent business trip to Portland, Oregon. It is the most religiously “unaffiliated” city in North America.[2] Despite that, I find Portlanders open to spiritual conversations. Coffee shop denizens, restaurant staff and people encountered at random joined us in conversations about spiritual matters. All were receptive and many actually welcomed discussion.
The second encounter was aboard a recent cruise. My wife and I shared the evening dinner table with a lovely Muslim couple. They welcomed our thanksgiving prayers over the meal; the gentleman thanked us for praying. We enjoyed cordial discussions about religion. We talked about the similarities and differences between Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Our new friends’ spiritual lives revolved around their mosque, Friday prayers and charitable work with orphaned children in Cairo.
Portlanders and Muslims? If you ask the typical Christian, you’d be hard pressed to think anyone less receptive to discussing religion with Christians. But when you go out into the field you find that unchurched people welcome spiritual conversations. When they are approached with respect and the conversation is gracious, people are ready to listen.
The average American Christian has no idea.
The data prove it
Do a cursory search about spiritual interest in America on the Internet. The facts are easy to find.
Gallup, LifeWay, Barna, and other research organizations have studied the unchurched in America. All come to the same conclusion; the numbers may vary from survey to survey, but the bottom line is the same: America is a target rich environment for the gospel.
Yes, church attendance is in decline. It has been decreasing for decades. And yes, the number who list “None” as their religious affiliation on the increase. It has been trending upward for years. You’ll soon discover that 80 percent of those living in the typical church’s ministry area are churched.[3] They have either dropped out or rejected churches.
Jumping to the wrong conclusion
The increase in the number of unchurched and nones does not signal disinterest or antipathy to spiritual concerns. Although many Christians come to that conclusion, it is a logical fallacy. The conclusion (“people are uninterested in spiritual things”) does not flow from the premise (“people don’t attend church”).
The justifiable conclusion is “the churches they know are of no interest to them.” That’s another matter entirely, and more often than not, the blame rests with those churches, not with the unchurched or the nones. They’re keenly interested in spiritual things.
That’s what the research shows.[4]
The numbers in your area
Take a few minutes to crunch some numbers to assess your mission field.
A = the number of people living within five miles of your church
X = A multiplied by .8 (the percentage of unchurched)
Y = X multiplied by .47 (the percentage who will engage in spiritual conversations)
Z = X multiplied by .31 (the percentage who will listen to spiritual conversations)
Target = Y + Z
Here are the numbers for the church my wife and I attend:
A = 160,000
X = 128,000
Y = 60,160
Z = 39,680
Target = 99,840
They’re open. Are you?
Three out of every four unchurched people welcome spiritual conversations. They’re interested in eternal matters. They want to hear what others think and then form their own opinions.
The opportunity presented by this target-rich environment calls for different tactics than those we’ve been using. Rather than trying to attract them into the church, we have to meet them in the marketplace. Instead of using the hit-and-run witnessing method, we have to cultivate trust so they will listen. Talk to them about Jesus Christ and God’s offer of eternal life.
Recent research into best practices of evangelism and witness confirmed what we’ve known all along. People aren’t looking for a church, they’re looking for answers.[5]
In order to get millennials back in churches, “focus on the Gospel” and the person of Jesus Christ. Millennials are seeking and interested in spiritual things even though they might not be going to church.
1. https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Target%20rich%20environment ↩
2. https://www.oregonlive.com/faith/2015/03/portland_unaffiliated.html ↩
3. David Olsen, The American Church in Crisis. ↩
4. Thom Rainer, “5 Insights About the Unchurched That Might Surprise You” Outreach Magazine https://outreachmagazine.com/features/24182-unchurched-insights.html ↩
5. Samuel Smith, “4 missional focus areas for churches looking to transform their cities” The Christian Post, n.d. https://transform-their-cities.html ↩
Photo source: istock
 | Bud Brown is an experienced ministry leader, writer and educator. He is co-founder of Turnaround Pastors and co-author of the ground-breaking Pastor Unique: Becoming A Turnaround Leader. He brings special expertise to change leadership in the local church, mentoring pastors to become revitalization leaders, training churches how to find and recruit the best talent, and training leadership teams how to achieve their shared goals. Learn More » |
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