The past couple of weeks, we’ve shared some of the keys to starting an effective benevolence ministry through your church or ministry. We walked through the process of developing a framework for benevolence and covered some aspects of transformational ministry. Often, however, the process of creating or redeveloping a benevolence ministry isn’t linear.

As we’ve walked alongside churches and organizations to help them develop benevolence ministries, we’ve heard a lot of stories about how these ministries have gotten up and running and grown into something beautiful. 

One of our favorites is the story of how one church in our own home town of Chattanooga, Tennessee, went about getting their framework and policies in place and the way that it has transformed everyone involved over many years.

The folks at First Presyterian would be the first to say that they aren’t doing everything right—that they’re still learning from their mistakes and growing in their capacity to serve—but they are still going! More than that, they are encouraging other churches in their area to press into what might be possible if they lean into loving their low-income neighbors patiently and faithfully.

If your church or organization is trying to create or reinvigorate a benevolence ministry that leads to real change, we’d like to invite you to join our upcoming training, Helping Without Hurting in Benevolence Ministry. In this six-week coach-led online training, we cover all the aspects of developing an effective benevolence ministry and our team will walk alongside you as you make plans to apply what you learn in your church or organization.