The term “unengaged” is a recent label developed to assist with our Great Commission task. According to Global Research, a people group is described as unengaged “when there is no church planting methodology consistent with Evangelical faith and practice under way. A people group is not engaged when it has been merely adopted, is the object of focused prayer, or is part of an advocacy strategy.”
This term is a very helpful addition that assists us with distinguishing between an unreached people group (one that is less than 2% evangelical) and an unreached people group that does not have any team working among them.
Global Research produces the valuable monthly resource known as the Global Status of Evangelical Christianity. This list notes the unreached and also the unengaged-unreached peoples in the world. Thankfully, Global Research is now providing data related to the United States and Canada. This provision is of tremendous value to understanding and reaching the nations living on this continent. Last year, when I published Strangers Next Door, the estimated number of unreached peoples in North America was 541, with 361 located in the United States and 180 in Canada.
Recently, I took the liberty to compare their list of the largest unengaged-unreached people groups–with populations of 100,000 or more–with the list of unreached people groups residing in the United States. I also consulted peoplegroups.org.
The result is a new list (among others) that influences our church’s North American strategy.
Of the list of 378 people groups (with populations of 100,000 or more) that are considered unengaged and unreached in certain countries, at least 21 of those groups have representatives in this country. Please note, this is not an exhaustive list. People group research is presently being conducted in the States. However, this representative list of 21 groups is a significant resource for Kingdom stewards living in this country.
This list of twenty one groups (including three now engaged in the U.S.) reveals the migrations of the unreached peoples to the United States–where there is much freedom to share the gospel and plant churches. This list also leads us to ponder the possibility that reaching the unreached over here, may open opportunities to reach the unengaged-unreached over there.
HERE is a pdf of the list.
(image credit: Microsoft)
Thank you for this. Very helpful. My team and I are currently engaging the Fulani population (2.5K) in Memphis. If you are interested, I am aware of at least one team currently engaging Fulani in a W. African country. One of the families spent a good bit of time in Memphis with us as they fund-raised. They mentored us and helped us down the road of beginning to engage F here.
Thank you for this valuable resource! I’m quite surprised that the 40,000+ S’s in Minn haven’t been engaged. Praying Luke 10:2!
Thanks, Ryan, for sharing with us. Thankful to hear of your service.
You are welcome, Nathan. Keep praying Luke 10:2! There is probably engagement in MN, but the list represents groups that are unengaged somewhere in the world. The list helps us understand that reaching the unreached here may open opportunities to reached the unengaged in other places.