Lost in Plain Sight: The Unseen Spiritual Crisis in our Backyard

In 2011, a Christianity Today reporter interviewed Billy Graham at his home in Montreat, North Carolina, about life and faith. Seated in his chair, Graham was asked, “What are the most important issues facing evangelicals today?” Despite being in his early 90s and struggling with Parkinson’s and other health issues, Graham, reflecting on decades of gospel ministry, offered these sobering words:

“The most important issue we face today is the same one the church has faced in every century: Will we reach our world for Christ? In other words, will we prioritize Christ’s command to go into all the world and preach the gospel? Or will we turn increasingly inward, caught up in our own internal affairs or controversies, or simply become more and more comfortable with the status quo?”

Nearly fourteen years later, Graham’s response seemed to carry a prophetic force. These questions are relevant and timely in our day. They are deeply challenging and convicting, but questions every follower of Christ should ask themself: Will you reach your world for Christ? Will you go? 

These are questions that have been burning in my heart since the day God met me as a lonely college student in the Fall of 2016. I was fully set on my own plans and ambitions, but when Christ became my Lord, he gave me a new mission: To win the world to Himself. However, despite this burning desire, I must confess that there have been many days that I have struggled with feelings of complacency towards the mission of God. Like many of you, I have realized that I must continually pray for the Holy Spirit’s reviving power to stir my heart for the lost. I have to get outside of my self-absorbed, comfort-seeking disposition and lift my eyes to see that the harvest truly is plentiful. 

I long to see college students, seminary, and everyday Christians, both young and old, take their testimonies and the gospel to the public square to boldly proclaim Christ in their cities. And I believe that when we do, our nation will begin to see revival. My hope and aim in this article is to ignite a fire and passion inside you to do just that. I plan to do this today in two ways: first, by shedding light on a potential blind spot I’ve observed in our mission efforts, and second, to reveal what I believe in many ways is an unseen spiritual crisis in our backyard. 

Winning Battles, Yet Losing the War at Home

By way of illustration, consider a zealous military commander who sent thousands of troops overseas to conquer foreign lands. Although a mighty leader, he had one fatal blind spot. Because of the pressing needs abroad, he sent all his resources to neighboring countries, leaving his own country vulnerable to attack. While the commander was away on a mission, an enemy seized the opportunity to invade his homeland, taking hostages and conquering cities. Despite all of his success overseas, ironically, this commander lost the war at home. 

This illustration sheds light on a potential blind spot for mission-minded believers— if we are not careful, amid our energy and efforts to reach countries abroad, we can miss our own land. Could it be that while we are investing our time, energy, and resources into foreign nations, we are losing the war in our own? 

Please don’t misunderstand me; I strongly support international missionary service. I believe it should be prioritized, and I hope many of you reading this will one day commit to missionary service overseas. However, I know that many of you are living in the United States and will be for the next several years, where you don’t need to cross seas to find tremendous Great Commission opportunities at your back door. 

The Great Harvest in Our Backyard

For many readers, it may not be surprising to learn that a nation whose evangelical presence was once influential is now a post-Christian, secular, and largely unreached land. As our country becomes increasingly secular, many of us have accepted our fate or, worse, have become convinced that this is not much of an issue at all. 

In the last ten years, many articles have come out from Christian sources speaking of the rising influence of Megachurches in the United States. Such articles reveal that churches such as Lakewood, Hillsong, Saddleback, and Life.Church has seen unprecedented growth in the last decade. (Christianity Today, 2008, Premier Christianity, 2023)

If we are not careful, we can assume that with this megachurch boom, the American church at large is growing in overall size and influence. But what if I told you the exact opposite was occurring?

We’ve been told that America is predominantly Christian, with studies revealing 70-80% of American citizens identifying as “born again” Christians. (Pew Research, 2021) But could this figure possibly be an accurate assessment of true believers in America? Could it be that for every ten people you encounter in your local grocery store, 7-8 of them are born-again believers? John Dickerson makes a compelling observation in his book, The Great Evangelical Recession:

“In the 2009 American Religious Identification Survey, 76 percent of Americans self-identified as ‘Christian.’ If we’re not careful, we might assume the majority of the country understands Christ, the Bible, and Christianity the way we evangelicals do. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Sociologists have long known that Americans who self-identify as ‘Christian’ rarely attend any church, let alone an evangelical one. Of those who do attend church, large segments are Catholic, non-believing, or even Mormon. In short, the vast majority are not Christians by the evangelical definition of trusting in Christ alone for eternal salvation and valuing God’s Word as the true standard for belief and practice.” Dickerson continues, “By multiple accounts, evangelical believers actually make up between 7 and 9 percent of the United States population.” (Dickerson, p. 25)

Dickerson reveals that when these self-identified Christians are asked more specific questions regarding their faith, it is shown that of those who are self-identified Christians, most do not believe in the fundamental Christian doctrine of the exclusivity of salvation in Christ alone. I was stunned when I first read Dickerson’s book and found that the more accurate number of Christians in America is around 7-9%. Realizing that up to 93% of our neighbors, co-workers, and classmates are not trusting in Christ alone for salvation is sobering. 

Additionally, there is a great harvest among American immigrants. Pew Research has revealed that on average, 1.1 million immigrants enter the U.S. each year, accounting for 68% of our population growth. Countries like Mexico, India, China, Venezuela, Cuba, and Brazil contribute to some of the largest groups. (Pew Research Center, 2019.”) Many of these immigrants have never been invited into an American home or had the opportunity to hear the gospel from their neighbors. In many ways, the nations have come to our backyard. I share these findings of the rising number of immigrants and the totality of the lostness among our American neighbors to show that the need here for bold local evangelism is enormous. 

The Time is Now

God has prepared an incredible harvest in America. And as you look forward to the pressing need in foreign nations, I want to encourage you not to neglect the urgent needs right here in your own country. We have an incredible opportunity to be faithful in our Father’s harvest right here right now, not just someday somewhere else.

For those of you called to serve internationally, I urge you to also consider the lostness around you. In our high schools, colleges, walmarts, gyms, and citywide events—there are souls waiting to hear the Good News. We must boldly proclaim the gospel in our city, just as the Lord encouraged Paul in Corinth, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent.. for I have many in this city who are my people’ (Acts 18:9-10)., This promise holds for us today. There are still many Americans in desperate need of spiritual revival and awakening. And further, millions from foreign nations are moving to our backyard. Could this be the day and the hour for America to see a great spiritual revival? So I ask you once more: Will you reach your world for Christ? Will you go?