One of the most practical things a church can do is direct its resources and message to the heart of what its congregation is experiencing. When day-to-day relevance is injected into faith, relationships with God and one another grow.
A striking and very positive example of this struck me when I came upon a story about a Dallas church which dedicated its Sunday service to the unemployed. The pastor of Concord Church, Bryan Carter, was drawn to the idea of the service because so many in the congregation had either been laid off or had direct connections to people who have.
The church also provided gift cards to local merchants for some of its members.
As Christians, many of us are taught from an early age that two cornerstone tenets of our faith are prayer and serving others in need. On both of these accounts, it appears Concord Church understands that to a refreshing degree.
I’m in the unfortunate group of most people who know friends and have relatives who have lost jobs. I’m thankful daily for the opportunities my wife and I have to provide for our family. It’s great to see a church that seems to understand this so well in attempting to provide for its own family.
Thanks for sharing this Peter. Times likes really allow the church to be the church and address the true needs of people. The message people receive from a gift card–“we care about you”–means a lot more than the monetary value. I noticed on their site that they also have a community jobs board to help those looking for work.