Time released a story this week addressing the upcoming (some say it has already happened) milestone of the birth of the 7 billionth person in the world today. They tied this demographic milepost to the continued growth of the mega cities of the world.
If you are looking for a place to serve, have you considered any of the following cities? I’m sure they could use a church planter or two.
What is already taking place in these 20 cities is and will continue to influence global missions for years to come. The historical forces are already in motion. Now is not the time to flee the city, but to connect with the people there–and to connect them to the gospel. Now is not the time for the Church in the West to allow our Majority World brothers and sisters to fend for themselves, but to connect with them and enter into healthy gospel partnerships for the multiplication of disciples, leaders, and churches.
If you are talking missions in the 21st century, then you had better start spending a good amount of time talking urban.
Check out the links to the articles on these cities. While some of them may be unfamiliar to some of us today, I guarantee these cities will become familiar to us tomorrow.
(Just a side note to my North American and European readers…I only see 1 “Western” megacity here. What does this fact communicate about the future of global influence? How should this affect missionary strategy?)
THE 10 BIGGEST MEGACITIES OF TODAY
Manila
Shanghai
Delhi
São Paulo
Jakarta
Mumbai
New York City
Mexico City
Seoul
Tokyo
THE 10 FASTEST-GROWING CITIES OF TOMORROW
Lahore, Pakistan
Manila
Shanghai
Kolkata
Lagos, Nigeria
Karachi
Mumbai
Kinshasa, Congo
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Delhi
What thoughts come to mind whenever you read over these two lists?
My thought: which one do you want me to go to, Lord?
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