Community Restoration and The Church.

We Don’t Need New Programs. We Need the Church to Start Functioning the Way God Created It to Function! 

By: Dr. Tony Evans

There is a lot of talk surrounding community restoration.

People will debate differing views. Some churches have panel discussions, and others hold conferences.

Some politicians promise new Initiatives. But is it all talk?

Are there tangible tasks we could do – to bring about reform?

In this Message, Dr. Tony Evans – provides biblical and practical actions the church can take to help restore our communities.

Community Restoration and The Church.

Conduit  

We don’t need to create new institutions in order to implement viable and lasting solutions for community restoration.

We just need to leverage that which we already have.

The local church exists as the best vehicle through which we find the necessary elements to achieve the purpose of social restoration.

Since many of our community issues are ethical and moral at their foundation, churches represent the most natural social service agency to address these issues.

The church provides holistic, long-term solutions that change how people think, which ultimately determines how they live.

Therefore, the church should be involved in all areas of community life including local schools, businesses, and government.

So why haven’t we seen change in our communities?

Well one reason is because the church has become a cul-de-sac where God’s teachings, favor and blessings have stopped flowing.

The church was designed to be a conduit, where these things pass through.

Meaning, as God shows the church favor and gives blessings, those things should then be passed on to the community.

The church should be involved in local schools to influence children and parents.

Also, The church should be involved in local businesses to influence economics.

And The church should be in local government to influence policy.

When the church gets strategically involved in these areas, God’s blessings will flow into the community and positive outcomes will abound.

We don’t need new programs.

We need the church to start functioning the way God created it to function. 

How can your local church influence local schools, businesses and government in your community? 

Genesis 12:1-3 KJV

[1] Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

[2] and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

[3] and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

https://bible.com/bible/1/gen.12.3.KJV

Community Restoration and The Church.

Next Generation  

Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent annually on programs, worldwide missions and ministries, – 

aimed at adults when the ripest harvest is right across the street in the lives of young people longing to hear that they are valuable, skilled and have both a future and a hope.

Studies show that outreach to children has the greatest possible impact towards kingdom building.

Therefore, the church should have a strong desire to partner with nearby schools.

One reason this partnership works rests in the fact that all communities already possess families, schools and churches.

Something “new” doesn’t need to be created.

Instead, we’re taking the preexisting elements in the community and bringing them together with the content and scope of the gospel.

With the content of the gospel, the church shares the salvation message with families in order to change their thinking and lifestyles.

With the scope of the gospel, the church provides social services to students and families who are in need.

This is a tangible way for the church to strengthen the family.

To the degree that families are stabilized, communities are positively affected.

This is so because the breakdown of the family is the single greatest cause of social disintegration.

High school dropouts earn an average of $260,000 less than graduates over their lifetime,

and taxpayers spend more than $8 billion annually on them for public assistance.

High school dropouts have increased our prison population which now costs over $52 billion a year.

Teenage pregnancies contribute to a $ 10 billion annual bill by way of public assistance.

These are just a few alarming stats, but there are many others.

The bottom line is that we need to help, support, and equip our children.

After all, it is far easier to shape a child than to repair an adult.

What are some of the ways a church can partner with a school to offer social services?

1 Peter 4:10 KJV

[10] As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

https://bible.com/bible/1/1pe.4.10.KJV

Community Restoration and The Church.

Delivery System  

Amazon Prime’s fast delivery system completely reshaped ecommerce as goods could be delivered to shoppers’ doorsteps quicker than ever before.

The church needs to position itself to be the major social service delivery system to the community.

As the church delivers these services to the doorsteps of people within the community, it provides an avenue to community transformation.

Some services that a church can provide include:

mentoring, tutoring, life skills education, parenting education, adult literacy, GED courses, computer and technology training, job readiness training, and business networking.

Churches can also provide human needs assistance by opening a food pantry, resale store and providing housing assistance.

Furthermore, Churches can offer counseling and crisis intervention programs.

They can also provide after school programs, summer camps and sports leagues.

Churches can also open pregnancy centers that assist girls and women to choose life for their children and aid them in the entire process.

This includes offering medical services, family care education, counseling and offering newborn necessities like diapers, wipes, and toiletries. 

Why should the church offer all these services?

Because the church has been uniquely called to impact our society for good by effecting positive values and beliefs and providing a higher quality of life in that area.

These services are scalable.

All churches, no matter their size, can impact their communities.

Social ills cannot be solved simply with social helps, since their root is often spiritual in nature.

So, in the end, establishing and nurturing relationships in the community serves as a bridge back to the local church.

What services does your church offer to change the community it’s in? 

Acts 20:35 KJV

[35] I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

https://bible.com/bible/1/act.20.35.KJV

Community Restoration and The Church.

Transformed Thinking  

The mission of revitalizing and transforming communities begins with the individual along with the foundational truth—what a man thinks, he becomes.

To put it another way, one’s behavior is controlled by one’s thoughts.

If one’s thought life is changed, the person is changed.

Changed individuals transform families, and transformed families restore communities.

I am living proof of this.

Urban Baltimore has one of the lowest graduation rates in the country.

I remember what it was like to try and learn at a school that was understaffed, had teachers who were overworked, lacked supplies, and had little motivation to teach.

And I remember not being able to see beyond my current reality.

It wasn’t until my parents and my mentor opened my eyes to something better that the idea of college came to me.

While my high school grades didn’t reflect that of a student with much of a future, I still went on the belief instilled in me,

and I later graduated from college and with academic honors from seminary,

and was the first black to graduate with a doctoral degree from Dallas Theological Seminary.

But that was because I had people in my life urging me to see beyond my own limited perspective.

They saw something in me even when I could not, and I am a better man today because of it.

Individuals are changed and communities are transformed when people invest in others and help them look beyond what they currently see.

As the church offers tangible social services, it gives people glimpses of what their lives and communities could be.

How can you invest in somebody else and help them to see a life beyond their current circumstances?

Galatians 6:10 KJV

[10] As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

https://bible.com/bible/1/gal.6.10.KJV

Community Restoration and The Church.

Also Read: We’re Going to Get Through This! – Diademng (thediademng.org)

We hope this message encouraged you. If you would like more, click here: https://mailchi.mp/63245651a2df/thediadem-family

Community Restoration and The Church.