A column published on Magnolia Tribune said the United States is “in trouble” because of what it described as an anemic church. The column quoted a board member of a missions organization as saying, “America is in trouble. Because the church is in trouble. We are more concerned with appetite and comfort than we are in the Truth.”
The column said many evangelicals share that assessment and blamed ease, comfort and a lack of persecution for dampening spiritual growth in the U.S. It quoted critics who argue that when hardship is absent, the environment is less conducive to what they called healthy spiritual development.
The writer recounted a radio interview with a Chinese author who, the column said, told him persecution had helped keep doctrine “pure” and made the gospel attractive. The author reportedly responded “Oh, no!” when asked if prayer should be offered for the lifting of persecution.
The piece cited a prominent missiologist who had expected Africa to become the center of the global church but said the rise of the prosperity gospel undermined that trajectory. The column said the missiologist now believes China may lead in the decades to come. It also quoted Dr. Gary Maxey, founder of West Africa Theological Seminary, saying the school seeks “a renewal of orthodoxy and holiness and scriptural Christianity” and that hard places may drive future leadership for the church.
The column concluded that America is “indeed, in trouble” because of its weak church but added the nation could recover through what it described as a move back to scripture and called for decisive action. The piece was published on Magnolia Tribune.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
