Donna and I are in North Georgia today.

We are here for a few reasons. First, we are taking a little time off today. Then, I have some meetings at the North American Mission Board tomorrow. Finally, we are staying over for a conference on Monday called ChurchPlanters.Com. (It's a great conference so check out the web page if you are in the area-- more about that on Saturday.)

My meetings at NAMB revolve around some recent research.
Obviously, I believe in research. It doesn't hold out the hope for fallen humanity, but I believe that research is valuable to the church as we seek to communicate the gospel, plant churches with strategic precision, and lead congregations that are effective in their God called tasks.

For example, we are having an excellent continuing conversation here at the blog about some of Barna's new research on spiritual gifts. It points to a broad knowledge about the subject among evangelicals, but also some areas of confusion.

You may are aware that "the North American Mission Board is collaborating with LifeWay Research on two research projects. One is researching the most effective methods for sharing Christ with the people of North America, and the other is one of the largest studies ever conducted on ministry among first-generation immigrant groups.

Here's what's happening with the former project. We surveyed 15,000 Americans concerning how they were most likely to encounter and receive spiritually related messages. Is it direct mail, television, radio, websites, e-mail, periodicals, billboards, door-to-door, through personal relationships, or something else? This kind of research doesn't determine what message we share, but how we can best communicate "the faith that was delivered to the saints once for all."

The latter project, focusing on first-generation immigrants, is some desperately needed research, and the first of its kind. The need for this study "stems from the fact that between 1970 and 2005, the foreign-born population in the United States doubled from about 5 percent to more than 12 percent. By 2050, half the U.S. population is expected to be of a different race than non-Hispanic white."

Why does this matter? Well, the NAMB leadership explained it this way:

"Out of all the people groups in North America -- and there are 587 based on ethnicity and language -- we need to decide which groups to address first," said Van Kicklighter, senior church planting strategist for NAMB in Alpharetta, Ga. "Who are the most receptive? Which groups are most readily engaged in the Gospel or spiritual things?"

You see, research like this can help us better what people what people believe and how they behave. It can uncover presuppositions, prejudices and preferences, and therefore help us to see what we as the church can emphasize with ease, and what we will have to work at building a case for.

I believe in research because it can aid us in developing strategies and determining emphases that allow us to preach and teach with precision. So, I'm grateful for what the North American Mission board is doing as they seek to plant biblically faithful, culturally relevant, counter-cultural churches for the glory of God.