If you are still thinking about Compassion vs. Conversion then it may not make sense to talk about mapping and missions. There are many things that I have heard with regard to mapping and the Great Commission. One is, “if you define the task with great specificity, you take God out of the picture.” Another is, “If you define the greatest needs and place them on a map, you are not looking at the places where God is really working.” Yet others have articulated that the showing the work God has done through churches and mission agencies on the map give glory to God for his working in our world.

When we look to Scripture and see the story of the one lost sheep, we see Christ’s compassion for those who have no Shepherd. The willingness to go to where there has been no witness and go to where people are lost shows the compassion of Christ. At the same time, across the globe are people in various stages of growth in their relationship with God. Staying attuned to the various needs of the varied people groups allow us to tailor our ministries and trainings to share and disciple.

Mapping the Great Commission has been the heart of the World Missions Atlas Project (www.worldmap.org). Knowing where the church is and where it is not allows us to develop different strategies of ministry based on their segment of society and their exposure to the Gospel. This includes understanding the level of Bible translation, the level of literacy and prevalence of orality within the culture, which people groups have been exposed to the gospel and which ones have had no church planting. Together with all this information Churches, missionaries, and agencies are better equipped to find the areas where their gifting match needs nearby them and around the world.