We live in a very "Christian" area. Unfortunately it is mostly "Christian" in name only.
When looking at Branson, I can see several groups of people. The first is somewhat rare (in our area), but It does exist and that is the un-churched. These are those who have never had any exposure or connection to Jesus. Some may just have never heard the Gospel and some may be openly hostile to it.
Secondly, are the de-churched. These are those who once attended a church, who once professed a faith in Jesus but the cares of the world, time, or any number of things caused them to "fall away". I think this represents a HUGE number of people in Branson - even at the High School level.
Thirdly is the under-churched. These folks are attending a church semi-regularly, who profess a faith in Jesus, but who have not gone all out for Him. To these folks Jesus is Savior, but not always Lord. I know this group well, because I spent the bulk of my life there. It is the default mode of most people in our area. Church is more of a hobby and Jesus is more like a genie in a bottle that they drag out when it is convenient for them.
Lastly is the pseudo-churched. Simply put, this group is sold out to a lie and not Jesus. Depending on what they believe about Jesus, most may not be Christian. This might well be the hardest group to reach because often huge support structures exist to support whatever lie they are peddling. Family ties also bind many to these false teachings. This group is HUGE in our area.
How do you reach so many varied people? Focus on Jesus. Its what Paul did ( 1st Corinthians 15:1-58 ).
Now the question for us to answer is how best do we teach the Gospel firstly to ourselves and secondly to our area?
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