Page 41 - Finding Jesus with Good News report A5 WEB

Demographic variation

People’s challenges also varied depending on their
background.
Among participants with lower incomes, no one
struggled with the existence of God, and only one
reported no support from Christians. However, the
concept of being forgiven, combined with personal
struggles, lifestyle changes they felt they would
need to make, and what others would think of them,
were most difficult. In communities where people
often face significant disadvantages, personal and
relational challenges were the hardest thing.

The challenges facing those with no faith
background were more theological, including the
existence of God and person of Jesus. This isn’t
surprising, but again, it’s important to realise just
what a shift in worldview people are having to
make when they accept the gospel as adults. They
also reported being most impacted by the poor
behaviour of Christians and least likely to have
support in their faith journey. It seems probable,
given that many didn’t know any Christians, that
their perception was a stereotype, but it was still a
hurdle to navigate. Some described not knowing
anyone to talk to about their questions or if they
were allowed to go into a church at all.
By contrast, while also sceptical of the behaviour of
Christians, the youngest adults (aged 18-24) seemed
to have found the help or support they needed. All
of them had found people to talk to about Jesus
one way or another, suggesting that although there
aren’t many of them numerically, young Christians
tend to be public about their faith and willing to
support their friends’ exploration. However, the
cultural gap between Christian beliefs or ethics and
their own is clear given how many were wrestling
with lifestyle changes they felt they would need to
make as well as difficult aspects of faith.

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