Operation World Wednesday: Asia

If you are reading Operation World today, you will land in the continent of Asia this week.  For Westerners, this may be the most distant and unknown of all the continents, but with more than half the world’s population and ninety percent of the people being lost, it needs our attention more than ever.

Here is an introduction by numbers.

• Over 4.2 Billion People

• 254 cities of more than 1 million people

• 11 cities of more than 10 million people

• 28 of the world’s fifty largest cities are in Asia

• The two largest countries in the world are in Asia; China and India both have more than one billion people

• Tokyo, the world’s largest city (37 million), is in Asia

• 4,860 ethno-linguistic peoples reside in Asia

• 80% of the world’s least reached people groups reside in Asia

• The number of evangelical believers is approximately 150 million people.

• Christian totals, which include Catholic and Orthodox churches, extend to over 350 million.  This is only 8-9 percent of the total population.

For more information on getting the gospel to Asia, see Gospel for Asia.

Pray for Asia today.  Let you imagination ponder the number 4.2 billion people.  All of these are made in God’s image.  Most have never met a Christian; many have never heard the gospel.  Pray that in our generation, God these numbers would see massive changes.  

Lord, send self-less laborers to Asia, those who are willing to take up their cross and follow you for the sake of making Jesus Christ famous among the most unreached people on the globe.

Soli Deo Gloria, dss