What do you think?
Rate this book
Strangers Next Door: Immigration, Migration and Mission
More than ever, North America is being flooded by people from all around the world, many of them here illegally. How should the church respond to these sojourners among us? In Strangers Next Door professor of evangelism and church planting J. D. Payne introduces the phenomenon of migrations of peoples to Western nations and explores how the church should respond in light of the mission of God. As we understand and embrace the fact that the least-reached people groups now reside in (and continue to migrate to) Western countries, churches have unprecedented opportunites to freely share the gospel with them. This book includes practical guidelines for doing cross-cultural missions and developing a global strategy of mission. It also highlights examples of churches and organizations attempting to reach, partner with, and send migrants to minister to their people. Discover how you can reach out to the strangers next door by welcoming them into God's family.
209 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 2, 2012
16 people are currently reading
130 people want to read
About the author
J.D. Payne
30 books12 followersJ. D. Payne (PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is pastor of church multiplication at The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama, and has served as missionary.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 30, 2014
Have you noticed how many people from other countries are living in your city? J.D. Payne thinks this is part of God's providential work that creates great opportunities for mission if his people will have eyes to see it. My city, Columbus, Ohio, has the second largest Somali population in the U.S. with over 40,000 residing in our city. A whole network of shops, restaurants, places of worship (mostly Islamic) and businesses have developed in consequence.
People are moving for all sorts of reasons from country to country and Payne chronicles this movement with both stories and charts of data. There are refugees, migrants seeking better economic opportunities, students enrolling in our universities. And this is not just the case in the U.S. It is the case on every continent.
Payne has one simple contention and that is that those who come from a particular country, especially those not easily open to western missions, may make the best people to take the gospel back to these countries and plant churches. The basic issue is whether believing people in host countries will recognize the opportunity and respond.
Payne suggests a simple four part strategy consisting of Reach, Equip, Partner, and Send. One of the things he warns against is that without an intentional focus on sending, many will simply assimilate into a host culture and host believing communities. Contrary to some, he believes in real partnerships and that what Western churches have to offer is not all bad, even though paternalism in various guises is to be watched for. What he does observe is that Western partners with returning immigrants have much more access to the immigrant's culture than they would on their own.
What I like about this book is that it refocuses the discussion on immigration from national policy debates to the kingdom implications of the immigration that is taking place. While the policy debates do matter and Christians should be involved in pursuing justice and mercy that welcomes the stranger we should also be wondering what is God up to in these global dispersions and how we might co-operate with God in what He is doing.
People are moving for all sorts of reasons from country to country and Payne chronicles this movement with both stories and charts of data. There are refugees, migrants seeking better economic opportunities, students enrolling in our universities. And this is not just the case in the U.S. It is the case on every continent.
Payne has one simple contention and that is that those who come from a particular country, especially those not easily open to western missions, may make the best people to take the gospel back to these countries and plant churches. The basic issue is whether believing people in host countries will recognize the opportunity and respond.
Payne suggests a simple four part strategy consisting of Reach, Equip, Partner, and Send. One of the things he warns against is that without an intentional focus on sending, many will simply assimilate into a host culture and host believing communities. Contrary to some, he believes in real partnerships and that what Western churches have to offer is not all bad, even though paternalism in various guises is to be watched for. What he does observe is that Western partners with returning immigrants have much more access to the immigrant's culture than they would on their own.
What I like about this book is that it refocuses the discussion on immigration from national policy debates to the kingdom implications of the immigration that is taking place. While the policy debates do matter and Christians should be involved in pursuing justice and mercy that welcomes the stranger we should also be wondering what is God up to in these global dispersions and how we might co-operate with God in what He is doing.
May 17, 2023
Great content but full of stats which are pretty outdated 13 years later
January 8, 2016
I wanted to read Stranger Next Door because of the large population of international students that live in my community. My desire and love for missions to those who are unreached, and the very fact that many of students from those same countries live next door to my church, made this book an obvious choice to me.
This book did a very good job explaining the movements of people from all across the world and their reasons for moving and migrating. It also did a an excellent job helping the reader understand why this is happening from a biblical perspective. However, where I found the book lacking was it lack of specific and practical application. I finished reading, wanting more on the "how to's of outreach. Although there are a few chapters at the end of the book on strategy, that to, was lacking on specific examples. I understand that ministry can and will look different in different contexts. But a few more examples would have helped the reader.
This book did a very good job explaining the movements of people from all across the world and their reasons for moving and migrating. It also did a an excellent job helping the reader understand why this is happening from a biblical perspective. However, where I found the book lacking was it lack of specific and practical application. I finished reading, wanting more on the "how to's of outreach. Although there are a few chapters at the end of the book on strategy, that to, was lacking on specific examples. I understand that ministry can and will look different in different contexts. But a few more examples would have helped the reader.
February 6, 2021
The first 9 chapters are a bunch of numbers. The author wants the reader to understand the reality of where their neighbors come from, which is understandable. However, I felt as if I was reading a scholarly journal. Last 2-3 chapters he valuable info on how to love and reach your neighbors well.
November 30, 2018
Strangers Next Door is a great introductory book on diaspora missiology. “Gone are the days when we should think only of sending missionaries over there; we must now consider how we can both get to the unreached peoples over there while simultaneously working to reach them over here” (152). As global migration continues to increase, it will become more important that the Church in the West consider the potential of reaching out to those who have migrated into our countries.
This book matters and is essential for Western Christians to read today because, “something is missiologically malignant when we are willing to send people across the oceans, risking life and limb and spending enormous amounts of money, but we are not willing to walk next door and minister to the strangers living there” (33). The church must do more to reach out to the strangers next door and equip them to bring the Gospel to those in their own personal networks in the West and in their home countries.
This book matters and is essential for Western Christians to read today because, “something is missiologically malignant when we are willing to send people across the oceans, risking life and limb and spending enormous amounts of money, but we are not willing to walk next door and minister to the strangers living there” (33). The church must do more to reach out to the strangers next door and equip them to bring the Gospel to those in their own personal networks in the West and in their home countries.
December 28, 2022
* A book on reaching out to least reach groups of the world who are in your community
* Equipping those guys to reach their social networks in their home countries
* What is the point in sending foreign mission if you have not first discovered the people groups you are trying to reach in your city to equip them to reach people in their home countries
* God sovereignty in moving different peoples groups across the world to reach them with the gospel
* Must work with diaspora churches to reach people from their communities
* Partnership not pertainalism
* Be carful of western complex structures that are extra biblical and keep it simple as possible
* R.E.P.S: reach, equip, pray, send- keep it simple vision for migrants who become Christian’s
* Casting a bison strategy for migrants of different people groups
* Equipping those guys to reach their social networks in their home countries
* What is the point in sending foreign mission if you have not first discovered the people groups you are trying to reach in your city to equip them to reach people in their home countries
* God sovereignty in moving different peoples groups across the world to reach them with the gospel
* Must work with diaspora churches to reach people from their communities
* Partnership not pertainalism
* Be carful of western complex structures that are extra biblical and keep it simple as possible
* R.E.P.S: reach, equip, pray, send- keep it simple vision for migrants who become Christian’s
* Casting a bison strategy for migrants of different people groups
September 7, 2020
Very Informative Read!
The book focused on its objective very well while enlightening reads with the facts. The knowledge in this book was surprising. Though this book's intention was not to alter anyone's belief in anyway, the well written facts had me thinking about my past ideologies.
The book focused on its objective very well while enlightening reads with the facts. The knowledge in this book was surprising. Though this book's intention was not to alter anyone's belief in anyway, the well written facts had me thinking about my past ideologies.
January 29, 2020
Not really what I expected 😞
February 9, 2016
This is an excellent book that should be read by all pastors, mission leaders and Christians who want to know what God is doing in the world today - including North America. Payne begins by talking about immigration and migration from a Kingdom perspective. Then provides a Biblical and historical overview of migration and immigration. Essential reading for followers of Jesus - especially in the USA where currently fear and misunderstanding drive many Christians. It is amazing how God has used immigration and migration to change the face of nations, to bring peoples into relationship with himself and to renew His people in places where the Church is struggling. Included in the book are also numerous charts and statistics that are very useful for those wanting to understand immigration issues more fully. Payne ends the book with an excellent strategy and lots practical ways that followers of Jesus can reach immigrants and unreached peoples not only in North America but also around the world. God is doing some amazing things. A must read for western Christians.
May 30, 2014
J. D. Payne offers a well-timed message for the church in the West. His book is short, packed with research and stories, and very practical. His thesis is that mission should be considered TO, THROUGH, and BEYOND the diasporas. I can only imagine the implications once this message spreads . . . This book would be great for small groups focused on mission as well as individuals interested in diaspora missiology.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews