Book Review | Not Beyond Reach

You know that over-the-top excitement feeling when you find those who “get you?” I had that experience recently. Big surprise that it was over a book! That’s how authors and readers roll. Our people are on pages. This book validated a part of me that I thought was weird and not normal. Well, both of those are true, but it’s okay.

Not Beyond Reach: How to Share Jesus with the Young, the Deconstructed, and the Non-Religious by Aaron Pierce talks about how to be a missionary in your communities. He reports, with documentation, that almost half of millennials, those born between 1981 through 1996, and Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012 mark “none” when it comes to claiming a religious affiliation. What this means is there is a huge chunk of the population who probably weren’t raised in church, did not grow up learning the story of Jesus and God’s saving grace, and they aren’t likely to just wander into a church even when their world is crumbling. Many do not trust religious institutions and I’m willing to bet many view religious people as stuffy old men in suits (I’m guilty of this, btw).

Pierce asserts that because of this growing divide, we must update our evangelical models and he shows how to do this without compromising the truth. The key is changing our mindset to see ourselves as missionaries in our communities. The key to being a missionary in our communities is to “learn the language and beliefs of the “nones,” build authentic friendships with them, and engage them in courageous conversations.”

I’m going to focus on that second one for a minute because I’ve been involved in some of the traditional ways to share the gospel with non-believers. My husband calls these approaches “Amway” evangelism where you take a list of acquaintances, go to their house and explain why they are not saved and how Jesus came to die for them. I’ve done this approach and frankly, hated it. At the end of the meeting, we’d encourage the new believer to find a church of their choice and get a Bible. This felt. . .wrong. We’d just helped them (coerced? guilted?) them into claiming salvation, shouldn’t we stick around and, I don’t know, mentor them? Shouldn’t we follow up with them to see how they are doing? Satan loves to attack new believers, shouldn’t we, as the more experienced believers, be there to fight with and for them?

When I came to know the saving grace of Christ, it wasn’t because someone knocked on my door (I mean, I’ve had plenty of Jehovah Witnesses knock on my door and not once, despite their passion, have I ever considered they might be right). It was because people who truly loved Jesus had invested in my life on a personal friendship level and I had invested in their lives on that same level. I saw how they handled tragedy and disappointment. I saw how they handled being on top of the mountain in life. I came to know Jesus because the people I turned to when life was dark and scary knew and loved Jesus. They had His peace, compassion and empathy and I wanted it. But, I never would have seen it if they just gave me a spiel about Jesus. I actually had a guy stop by my dorm room after stalking me for weeks to save my soul. Some would call him passionate, but, honestly, looking back, he was a bully. My amazing, saved-to-the-bone roommate threw him out of our room when she realized I was completely overwhelmed by this guy and his message. He was pushing me further into human secularism (the religion of self). Her coming to my rescue in that moment was pivotal in my journey. She was a missionary in our dorm room. She understood my culture, my thought process, she cared enough to learn why I believed the way I did and didn’t tell me I was wrong even when she challenged me to look through a different lens. And she stood up for me when I didn’t know how to stand up for myself.

Not Beyond Reach teaches us how to be that missionary. It’s a good book because it explains why the millennials and Gen Zers aren’t in church and won’t go to church. They don’t trust organized religion but they are so hungry spiritually that we can connect with them. They are longing to be a part of something. Pierce encourages readers to understand where this younger generation is when it comes to attitudes and beliefs. They aren’t likely to attend a church event, they do not hold the same beliefs about truth, morality and the authority of the Bible that previous generations did, and they are often open to spirituality. Like everyone, they want to be known and loved. Society, for the most part, has created an epidemic of loneliness. Most connection is found on our phones and many young people are delaying marriage and family. It’s hard to be known and truly loved through a screen.

“When we befriend people, we are offering them a connection all of us long for,” Pierce says in his book.

If you are looking for a quick way to share Jesus, this probably isn’t the book for you. Building relationships takes time. Reaching a level of friendship where one can have spiritual conversation can take weeks, months, or years. It may not even be linear. Building a foundation of authentic friendship takes times, it takes steps forward and backward. However, this book is very clear about being transparent and honest about our belief in Christ. We are not to be covert operators. At the same time, we aren’t to flaunt any air of superiority. We’re just to be people, nice people, engaged people. We need to listen to understand and not simply to respond. Even if we see things completely different, As Pierce says, when you build trust, you can speak into their lives.

Pierce also tackles a lie that has gained strength recently--the lie of affirmation. That to be friends we must affirm or accept whatever they do. Jesus proves this wrong. He demonstrated having relationships and associations with many people without “affirming” their lifestyle. He ate with tax collectors, engaged in a beautiful conversation with a Samaritan woman without affirming their lifestyle.

NBR includes how to navigate divisive and sometimes explosive topics like politics and sexuality, how to introduce Jesus to non-religious people and how to have conversations with them. I read this book, and I listened to the podcast featured on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and at some parts, simply had to stop and absorb and pray. All those years I spent wrestling with guilt because I wasn’t knocking on doors and telling people about the Roman Road was misguided because I was building relationships and I have an answer for the hope that I have and I’m gentle and respectful with my answers. I’m planning to get more involved with Pierce’s ministry, Steiger Ministries, because they welcome artists and musicians to their team. Hopefully they will have some use for fiction author. I highly encourage you to get a copy or listen to the podcast if you worry about the younger generation.