Christian charity Jubilee+ is launching a new resource designed to help churches connect their work tackling poverty with sharing the Christian faith.
Speak Jesus, a 44-page magazine, has been produced for individuals, church leaders, evangelists and teams involved in mercy ministries. It offers practical ideas and guidance for Christians wanting to share the gospel alongside meeting practical needs.
Alongside material from Jubilee+, it includes contributions from organisations including The Message Trust, Christians Against Poverty, TLG, Hope into Action and London City Mission, and has been endorsed by the Evangelical Alliance.
"We’ve written and developed this resource because there seems to be a growing disconnect between mercy ministries and evangelism," said Natalie Williams, CEO of Jubilee+.
She continues: "We firmly believe that Christians and local churches are called to offer people hope for their immediate needs and hope for their eternal needs, hope for today and hope for eternity."
Jubilee+, which equips churches across the UK to support people experiencing poverty in their communities, said the vast majority of churches it works with encounter more non-Christians through mercy ministry projects each week than through any other activity.
According to research conducted by the Evangelical Alliance, only a quarter of churches surveyed said they had a "clear, cohesive strategy" integrating compassion ministries and faith-sharing. Half said the connection could be improved, while the remaining quarter reported a significant disconnect between the two.
Asked why churches may have become less confident about connecting practical support with sharing their faith, Williams said there were “a number of reasons”.
“Some are worried about exploiting people in their moment of vulnerability; others are restricted by funding they’ve received, some are concerned that their church won’t be a welcoming place for people who come to faith through compassion ministries; others have lost confidence in the gospel through disappointment or disillusionment,” she said.
Williams said that practical assistance should be offered regardless of whether recipients choose to engage with the Christian faith.
"It’s never ok to impose conditions on the practical help we offer people, and we need to be clear that anyone we support is free to turn down prayer and will not be forced to listen or engage with any gospel presentation," she said.
Williams suggested that churches could, for example, hold a testimony or gospel presentation after a meal that people are free to opt out of.
At the same time, she said churches should not "underestimate how many people do want prayer and to ask questions about the deep issues of life and death".
"If we listen attentively and speak sensitively, it’s just as much an act of compassion to offer help for someone’s eternal need as it is to offer help for their immediate need," she said.
"Jesus did both, and calls us to do likewise as we have opportunity, but always with gentleness and respect."
Speak Jesus is being launched on Saturday at the Good News People Conference, where Williams is due to speak alongside Gavin Calver, CEO of the Evangelical Alliance. The resource will also be made available online through Jubilee+.
