Know Thy Neighbor: The Starting Point for Rural Evangelism

Last updated on: July 16, 2018 at 5:15 pm by Brad Roth

Know Thy Neighbor: The Starting Point for Rural Evangelism 2018-07-16T12:20:52-05:00 Brad Roth

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Everybody knows everybody in rural communities. Or at least, that’s the perception many people–including rural people–have. A study by the Pew Research Center released in May found that while rural residents are indeed more likely to know all of their neighbors (40% of rural people claim to know all or most of their neighbors, compared to 28% suburban and 24% urban), folks who live in rural areas are not necessarily more likely to interact with their neighbors.

Both claims are striking for how the rural church thinks about equipping members for evangelism. Forty percent of rural folks who know all of their neighbors isn’t a particularly high number. In our churches it seems like we could set a higher bar. Can 50 or 60 or 75% of us aim to know all of our neighbors? And once we know them, can we aim to interact with them?

For the rural church, I think this means that while we need to help our congregations develop skills and know-how for reaching out (how do we actually have a conversation about Jesus?), perhaps the first piece we have to emphasize is the ancient art of neighboring. Before we can love our neighbors in the abstract, we need to get to know and interact with our real, concrete, next door neighbors. Knock on the door! Take them some flowers or tomatoes or tamales. Get to know them, hear their story, and then when the door opens, share the love of Jesus.

One big challenge, in my experience, of getting to know the neighbors in rural communities is the gap between old and new families. In a town like the one we live in, the names of the streets are the names of the founding families. The old and sturdy structure of relationships that trails back into pioneer days can sometimes mean that newcomers have a hard time breaking in. Old families have to make a conscious effort to adopt new families.

Of course, “adoption” is the operative word, no matter where we make our homes. God has adopted us through Christ (Ephesians 1:5). Now we’re sent out to share the gift.

So what do you think, readers? From your location–rural, urban, suburban, or somewhere in between–does this study and the challenges it poses for the church ring true? Do you know your neighbors? Have you shared your faith with them?

Uncategorized

evangelism

rural church

Previous Post

June 26, 2018

Who are Funerals for?

Next Post

July 23, 2018 Faithfulness and the Ecclesia Domestica

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month January 2023 November 2022 May 2022 April 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 April 2021 March 2021 December 2020 November 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

True or False: 3 John commends Diotrephes for his hospitality and love for the brethren.

Select your answer to see how you score.

FALSE TRUE

Books by This Author Books by Brad Roth

See All Titles »