Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)
Dec 11: United States of America
United States of America
North America
See Prayer Information
Geography
Area: 9,529,063 sq kmThe world’s third largest nation in area and population.
Population: 317,641,087 Annual Growth: 0.97%
Capital: Washington DC
Urbanites: 82%
HDI Rank: 13 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)
Peoples
Peoples: 364 (16% unreached) All peoplesUnreached Peoples Prayer Card
Official language: English. The growing Spanish-speaking Hispanic population is 11.2% of the population and numbers 34 million Languages: 176 All languages
Religion
Largest Religion: Christian| Religion | Pop % | Ann Gr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christians | 246,553,012 | 77.62 | 0.5 |
| Evangelicals | 91,764,554 | 28.9 | 0.8 |
Challenges for Prayer
Ethnic minority churches are the growing edge of US evangelicalism today. This is predominantly an urban phenomenon, but 10% of US counties now have racial and ethnic minorities as the majority. Points for prayer:a) Asian Church growth is pronounced. Dynamic networks of congregations are springing up among the 7,000-plus Asian churches. Korean churches number 4,000. Chinese in the USA have over 1,000 churches and are experiencing rapid church growth. There are even more Filipino congregations (America’s second-largest immigrant nationality after Mexico). There has also been church growth among Arabs, South Asians, Vietnamese and Iranians. Pray that such growth might continue – of any ethnicity, Asians in the USA retain the lowest rate of Christian affiliation.
b) The cultural balance of these churches. The greatest challenge is finding a way to integrate first-generation immigrants with second- and third-generation younger people. The integrity of the original culture and the appeal of mainstream US culture often conflict, even in church life. Pray for the provision of wise and forward-looking leaders. Pray for the calling of many to Kingdom service; cultural pressures often make the choice for full-time ministry a very difficult one.
c) Effective strategies and cooperation between Anglo-American and ethnic-minority churches and agencies to ensure these minorities are discipled in what is a highly fragmented ministry. In 2005, nearly 60% of IMB church plants were among ethnic minorities; 35% of all AoG churches are among ethnic minorities; CMA, CoG (Cleveland) and many others, especially Pentecostal and charismatic groups, focus on reaching minority communities.
d) Growth of missions vision is occurring most dramatically among Asian-American churches, Koreans in particular. Korean-Americans have the highest proportional sending rates of any ethnicity in the USA. The beginnings of similar mission movements are now seen among Chinese-Americans, Hispanics and African-Americans. One development with massive implications is mobilizing immigrant Christians as missionaries to their country and people of origin.
The less-reached. The sheer scale of outreach and the saturation of Christian media mean that very few are without ready access to the gospel, but many groups do need further specific attention for witness and intercession. Although the annual number of immigrants and refugees are fewer since 9/11, minority communities are still large in size and diversity.
a) Immigrants are more numerous and diverse in the USA than anywhere else on earth. In the USA, 31 ethnicities have populations of over one million. Mexico, China, Philippines, India, Colombia, Haiti, Cuba and Vietnam top the list of US immigrants. Millions come from countries where missionary access is very limited and where the majority are unreached. Their presence in the USA is the perfect opportunity to impact these less-reached peoples with the love and power of Christ – pray that churches will wake up to and seize this opportunity.
b) International students number nearly 700,000 and come from nearly every country in the world; well over half are from Asia. The largest numbers are from India (103,000), China (99,000), South Korea (75,000), Canada (30,000), Japan (30,000) and Taiwan (28,000). For many, this is their first opportunity to encounter the gospel. Most will return to leadership positions in their home nations after study. Their responsiveness to loving Christian ministry is remarkable, and is increasing with time. The Association of Christian Ministries to Internationals is an umbrella body linking ministries such as ISI (with 163 staff), InterVarsity(IFES), CCCI, Navigators and others. Pray for conversions and for discipling ministries that will enable these students to be effective witnesses when they return home.
c) The 5.2 million Jews are an influential minority, although proportionately in decline. Outside of Israel itself, the USA has the largest concentration of Jews in the world. In both Miami and New York, 9-10% of the population is estimated to be Jewish. Their growing receptivity and response to the gospel have been evident since 1970, and more Jews are being won to Christ in the USA than anywhere else since New Testament times. There are estimated to be up to 250,000 Messianic Jews. Many have integrated into Christian churches, but there are over 300 Messianic synagogues in the USA where Jewish customs and culture are preserved under Yeshua the Messiah. Nearly 50 agencies focus on reaching Jews with the good news; Jews for Jesus is one of the most dynamic of these.
d) Muslim numbers have steadily increased through immigration and conversion of African-Americans (especially in large urban areas). Still, two-thirds of Muslims in the USA are foreign-born. Estimated populations range from 1.3-7 million, meeting in more than 1,200 mosques. Although many more integrate into mainstream US life than their co-religionists in Europe, Muslims in America are also vulnerable to indoctrination by Wahhabist and other extremist interpretations that tend to control and fund many of the mosques and Islamic centres.
i Arabs. Many are Muslim, but two-thirds are Christian. The small minority of Islamists among them have gained notoriety for the community.
ii Iranians may now number up to 1.5 million. Around 5-10% are Christian, a large proportion of them by conversion. Disillusionment with Islam and with Iranian politics causes many to be open to Jesus. There are now around 40 Iranian Christian fellowships.
iii Somalis, Afghans, Bosnians and others all have significant refugee communities.
iv The prison population, especially among African-Americans, sees a rapid growth of Islam among prisoners. Up to 20% of the US prison population are now Muslim, and 80% of men who “find faith” are converts to Islam.
e) South Asians are one of the more affluent and well-educated ethnic communities in the USA. Most migrate for opportunities in business, technology, medicine or education. Nearly all are Muslim, Hindu or Sikh and come from sections of Indian society least exposed to the gospel; few are Christian. They number 5.5 million. Christian outreach to them is increasing.
f) The cults pose a challenge. Most function under the guise of Christianity but are full of false and extra-biblical teaching. Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses are the most aggressive proselytizers of these, and the fastest growing. Scientology does not even purport to be Christian but wields great influence, especially among celebrities. The popularization of the occult and the supernatural among youth culture and the media leads many astray as well. In all of these cases, well-informed and specific engagement must occur in order to draw them to Jesus – who is the way, the truth and the life.
g) The US prison population is very large, with 2.3 million in jail. It is the world’s largest prison population and nearly the highest incarceration rate. One-third of the prison population are African-American. There are over 2 million drug-related arrests annually, with 500,000 in prison and another 1.5 million on probation or parole due to drug-related offences. Pray for ministries such as Prison Fellowship International that seek to minister to them, win them to Christ, care for their families and rehabilitate them back into society.
For an additional 14 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.
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