We want to invite everyone in our church to ask God for one name, another person in our church, whom He wants us to reach out to in order to check in and partner with God in meeting their needs, whether those needs are physical, emotional, or spiritual.
“God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them.”
Acts 4:33-34
In the Book of Acts, the Holy Spirit fills every believer, and followers of Jesus provide for one another’s needs. We desire to see a similar grassroots movement spread within our church where every member’s needs are met. Below, we’ve provided a guide for how you can depend on the Spirit and care for one another in this moment — and for years to come — by focusing on just one person at a time.
(In the audio pinned on this page, you can listen to a guided exercise from Dave Lomas on how to approach all of this.)
Invite the Holy Spirit to Bring a Person to Mind
Discern with the Spirit to highlight one person in our church to reach out to in order to offer support. You can do this any way you’d like, but here are some optional steps:
- Pause in silence for 5-10 minutes. Consider being alone in a quiet space or setting a timer for focus.
- Ask God: “I want to partner with you to love someone in our church. Will you please bring one person to mind?”
- Be open to being surprised with a name or face you wouldn’t have expected. For example, the person may have no financial needs, but God might be inviting you to support them emotionally or spiritually. In any case, seek to be obedient in reaching out to whomever God puts on your heart.
- Pray blessing: If several people come to mind, pray blessing over all of them. But then ask God to highlight just one whom He would have you reach out to.
- Faithfully act by making first contact with the highlighted person. It might be a simple text like, “I just prayed for you, and I’d love to get on a call to see how I can support you right now.”
Reach Out to the Person
Make a friendly, supportive connection with the person. Here are a few very simple questions we encourage you to ask on a phone call:
- Where are you?
- How is your work going?
- Are there any needs you have that I can help you with? Spiritual or emotional needs? Physical or financial needs?
- What’s a specific way I can pray for you?
This initial conversation might open up more follow-up conversations.
Guidelines for How to Care for the Person
Offering care to people is a beautiful opportunity to partner with God. Here are a few guidelines from our church’s Benevolence Team on how to offer care:
- Needing care is normal. We all have seasons of life where we might need the support of others. Set a tone of normalcy to help others open up.
- Don’t force help. If a person doesn’t express a need or doesn’t ask for help, then that should be honored. Simply express your willingness.
- Trust in God’s ability. God knows exactly how to care for the person you reach out to, and you can rely on His ability—even if you aren’t sure what to do or say.
- Just show up. Don’t come with an agenda or fix. Instead, practice the “ministry of presence,” where you get to be a faithfully listening companion.
- Enter into God’s rest. Though people might experience anxious needs, non-anxiously respond and direct them to Jesus, who can calm frightening storms.
- Let go of any judgment. Connect with people empathetically and without any judgement. This can be especially important to voice to people who are experiencing shame.
- Maintain healthy boundaries. Remember that it’s okay to say “no” or “I don’t know” when there are requests for help—especially if a person you’re supporting becomes overly dependent on your care in a way that’s holding them back.
- Commit to God’s timeline. Sometimes partnering with God takes a moment, and other times, it’s an extended journey. It’s worth it to faithfully follow God’s lead in supporting a brother or sister for as long as it takes.
What If Someone Reaches Out to Me?
Enjoy connecting with them and knowing that God put you on someone’s heart. Here are some simple things to do:
- Say thank you! To both God and to the person showing you care, express a little gratitude to encourage their faithfulness.
- Be honest. Maybe you’d like some help or maybe not. Just be truthful, vulnerable, and open.
- Make requests. If you have specific ways you’d like help, ask for it — always without entitlement or expectation that they’ll be able to say “yes.”
- Reciprocate the kindness. Inquire about the needs of the person reaching out. Check if anyone has reached out to them. Perhaps God might have brought them to you so you could partner in caring for their needs.
What If I’m New & Don’t Know Anyone?
We acknowledge that in a church our size, there are many people who are new and haven’t made any connections yet. Perhaps you don’t know anyone to reach out to… or maybe no one has personally reached out to you. If so, please reach out to our ministry staff via The Card and tell us about your needs. We’ll follow up with you soon!