The church doorstep is a frequent destination for people in need. But most churches alone cannot fully meet all the needs of every homeless family, single mom, or elderly shut-in who asks them for help.
Or can they?
Love In the Name of Christ enables churches in a community to pool their resources and services so that those in need are not turned away.
- Families in need receive immediate and long-term help.
- Church members use their gifts and talents through specific, manageable opportunities to serve others.
- Local churches come together, across denominational lines, modeling unity of the Body of Christ.
- Lives and communities are transformed.
Imagine the difference churches can make by joining with other churches in their community to help those in need. When the Body of Christ works together, the results can be miraculous.
The story of one Love INC affiliate...
The challenge: Christian leaders in a Midwest city realized that though their community had many churches, few were working together. Some people in need received help, but others simply cycled from church to church. Few lives improved enough to actually break through poverty.
The solution: Christian leaders in this community founded Love INC based on a simple strategy: Bring community churches together across denominational lines and inventory their collective resources, ministries, and talents of the people in the congregation. Next, match those resources with people in need. Then, train church members to walk alongside people in need through a network of relationships and supportive services that together transform lives.
The impact: Today this Love INC affiliate represents a network of more than 80 churches working in unity to love their neighbors. They are reaching the real needs of more than 7,000 people each year through life skills training, affordable housing, job training, day care, transportation, parenting resources, and more. Through caring relationships they are offering the greatest gift: hope.
Levels of the Love INC
model
There are three levels to the
Love INC model, and each affiliate has the opportunity to minister to
people in need on all three levels. Each level goes deeper in
fulfilling Love INC’s mission to mobilize the Church to transform
lives and communities In the Name of Christ.
Level One: The Clearinghouse Model is the foundation of all Love INC affiliates and includes the basic steps below:
- Receive request for help. Love INC receives requests for help by telephone from churches and pastors, agencies, individuals and families.
- Assess the need. Specially trained Love INC volunteers or staff screen the request for extent of need and legitimacy, and discover any deeper issues fueling the crisis. Love INC determines what help the client has already received from agencies or churches, and ensures the need is manageable and specific.
- Refer to help. The request is referred to the most appropriate Love INC partner church, agency, or faith-based organization and the need is met.
- Follow up. Love INC reviews the outcome. Was the immediate need met? Is there a core issue that requires longer-term attention? The follow-up also provides an opportunity for the recipient to become connected to a local church if he or she so desires.
Level Two: Many Love INC affiliates have taken the model to Level Two, the Relational Ministry Model. This level trains and links church members with individuals and families in need on a long-term basis to provide mentoring, goal setting, skill training, and spiritual and emotional support. Affiliates must have an established, effective Clearinghouse for at least one year before requesting training in the Relational Ministry Model.
Level Three: In Level Three, the Comprehensive Community Development Model, Love INCs go even further to meet the needs of their communities by addressing the deeper issues that contribute to poverty and hopelessness such as lack of affordable housing, employment opportunities, day care, and other community-wide issues.
Visit the Love INC National Headquarters website for more information.