Church Starts and 'Needs-Based Ministries' for Reformation

Discover how Bypass Ministries is breaking free from cultural consumerism in Christianity.

As you read, you will be introduced to tools that can radically change how we address the problems of our cities. After nearly 30 years in an inner city church and over 40 years in ministry around the world, I’ve developed a simple illustration using a 3 legged stool. Each leg represents one facet of the problem of most communities in impoverished areas.

The first leg represents that of alcohol and drug abuse. If the local church in the inner city can address the issue of chemical dependency by implementing for example, “Celebrate Recovery” … a program of education, counseling and accountability for breaking addictive behaviors … healing in the local community will occur.

The second leg of our stool represents establishing and maintaining a “Critical Needs Center”. This is the linking of a Bypass Church with an inner city church in an attempt to organize food, shelter and financial assistance for those in need. Keep in mind, this component of ministry is often difficult for churches in low income areas where the needs are far beyond what the local church is able to meet. While suburban churches may be growing with a continual influx of resources and personnel and a small yet manageable request for need … the inner city church has the opposite … diminishing resources and personnel while mammoth need looms on the horizon.

The third leg is what I like to call, GEM, an acrostic encompassing three areas in the life of so many young people who often are caught in the vicious cycle of poverty. The “G” stands for graduate or GED equivalent. The “E” stands for employment of the group coming out of the previous program. The “M” stands for developing and maintaining a mentoring relationship between employer and employee. Again, these attempts develop when churches in thriving areas are refocused not on buildings, budgets and excessive overhead but instead, are simple New Testament models. Now resources and personnel are much more quickly linked to need rather than church bureaucracy.