This past week, as I was monitoring a set of conversations about unreached people groups, the thought occurred to me to give God praise for the fact that his eternal plan of redemption keeps on pushing forward regardless of any earthly campaign or individual. I listened as one of the foremost researchers of our day reported that every day, he “hears about an average of 20 to 30 new engagements among previously unengaged and unreached people groups.” Like many of us, he is working behind the scenes to connect these new troops to existing outreaches, where they exist. If you thought we were working in a time when fewer and fewer missionaries were departing, perhaps that rumor has been oversold. Another friend pondered, “I just feel that the cause of these unengaged is kind of more our responsibility than His in a sense, you know? Until we get there. . . He can’t do what only He can do. It’s almost like He can’t engage them, and we can’t reach them. We can engage them, and He can reach them. … We CAN finish this minimum apostolic prerequisite of being incarnate among, and until we do that, a people is both unreached and unreachable.” These saints and dear friends aren’t in it for the notoriety or the fame. They serve our living God and those who have never heard of Him. They deserve our prayers and our highest levels of energy to forge on in completing the task that Jesus gave us so long ago. May God strengthen them, and all who come behind them.
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If the researcher you mention is correct then over the course of this year (2013) 1,040 new people groups will be engaged (20 engagements X 52 weeks). Engagement at this rate would deplete the “missions world” of all UUPGs within 3 years. Currently, there are 3,039 UUPGS according to grd.imb.org.
Can you name the researcher or point to a publication of their research?