‘We’re glad you’re here’

Every time Bruce and Julie meet someone from a least-reached people group, they start with a simple message: “We’re glad you’re here.”

Since returning to the Twin Cities, the couple realized they have as many neighbors of Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist backgrounds as all the people in Orlando, Florida, or Irvine, California. That means many chances for the initiative leaders to warmly welcome people from countries where they are unlikely to meet Christ or follow the Lord.

There’s another simple connection Bruce and Julie eagerly form: empowering more Christians to befriend people scattered from their faraway, least-reached nations.

“This is a majority culture opportunity,” Bruce said of From Scattered to Gathered, Converge’s initiative among the least reached in America’s cities.

FS2G started in Minneapolis and St. Paul, which has the largest Somali community in North America. Bruce and Julie served for 24 years planting churches among Muslims in West Africa. When they returned to the Twin Cities in July 2018, they encountered communities of Africans who reminded them of the location they’d recently left.

“We already understood the opportunities and the need for engaging these communities here locally,” he explained.

Not all American churches have the training, even if they recognize the opportunity of serving Afghans, Somalis, Japanese and others who have very few Christians among them. Only India and China have more least-reached people within their borders than America.

“We live in the suburbs, and we see more and more Somalis and other nationalities in our grocery stores,” Bruce said. “No longer is the suburban church closed off to these opportunities.”

The From Scattered to Gathered initiative team includes Bruce and Julie and John and Kathy P. The initiative seeks three accomplishments that can ignite a disciple-making movement among every least-reached people group in the Twin Cities.

First, they’re looking for 25 churches that will implement a prayer initiative and disciple-making movement.

“We’re putting a lot of effort into mobilizing prayer in the Twin Cities for the peoples represented,” he said. “All of these movements of the gospel we’re reading about among Muslim and Hindu communities are only happening because of radical prayer and fasting.”

Second, they are trusting God for 25 apostolic communities of disciple-makers from both minority and majority cultures. Lastly, the initiative prays for 25 movement leaders who can resource local churches and coalitions of congregations.

“We’re looking for disciples of Jesus who are multiplying themselves and are agents of the kingdom,” Bruce added.

That opportunity for local ministry that can make a global difference started with God’s sovereign efforts, Bruce noted. He said Acts 17 declares the idea that God is behind the scattering of people groups throughout the world. The Lord does this for his purposes, which inspires Bruce, Julie and others.

Related: A disciple from a least-reached country is serving his people as part of FS2G.

Local churches have two pathways into local gospel endeavors that contribute to the initiative. Converge has a leadership development experience for cross-cultural workers who can serve neighbors in their new city. In addition, churches can enter an engagement pathway where they participate directly in disciple-making among their neighbors from distant places.

“Our focus is on mobilizing and engaging local churches,” Bruce said. “We’re asking the local church to be on the front lines of ministry to the least reached.”

Local churches can understand their neighbors’ experiences and respond as Christ’s hands and feet. Such displays of love may not be easy, and transformation probably won’t come quickly, he said. Many people arrive here after several years of limbo in refugee camps and other cross-cultural relocations and transitions.

In addition, youth and young adults live with both their parents’ desire to keep cultural traditions and language skills while pressured by a new culture around the younger generation. Many of these neighbors, especially in younger generations, struggle with substance abuse, pornography and keeping jobs. Depression and mental health needs also create challenges.

There is hope though, Bruce and Julie said, using tools such as an American Bible Society trauma program. The global workers have used that program while serving believers and nonbelievers who’ve experienced significant trauma.

Because of tools like that, churches can begin making disciples among the diaspora God brought to their doorstep. Among those least-reached people, God can create a generation who knows and follows him. Then, those people can share Christ with their people, enabling a global, eternal harvest for Christ, even in the most closed countries.

Related: A Kentucky family lives next door to people from five different restricted countries.

Bruce said local churches are already doing tremendous work to engage the deep and wide needs of those new to America. For example, the Arrive Ministry has a sewing program and an English language learning program for women from Afghanistan who arrive in the Twin Cities. Volunteers can join such activities, he said.

More opportunities like that will be visible through the Twin Cities Diaspora Coalition website. Bruce and Julie based this resource on the Houston Diaspora Coalition, created by their friends Don and Cathy Allsman. These diaspora websites inform minority communities about ministries to them, including learning English, finding housing, meeting basic needs and sharing the gospel.

The From Scattered to Gathered Initiative means disciples will be made among some of the world’s people who have been incredibly hard to reach. There will be churches that learn to love their scattered neighbors and even some congregations who also embrace intense training to become strategic, cross-cultural disciple-makers.

Related: Converge churches can create biblical diversity when making disciples.

Then, those God has scattered may be those God gathers to himself as sons and daughters.

“We really believe that those that have migrated here and settled here and are following Christ are the ones that God is really going to use to reach the least reached here in North America,” Bruce said.

That’s why they’re glad to meet their new neighbors.

Converge is asking God for a gospel movement among every least-reached people group — in our generation. Learn how we are playing a role in accomplishing the Great Commission and how you can be involved.