10 Ways to Impact Your Community

Do you dream about making a positive spiritual impact on your community as an individual, a group or a church? If your answer was a yes, you might find the following tips compiled by Tearfund, a leading relief and development charity useful. These suggestions cover crucial areas of learning and development for church projects and Christian organisations that want to make a lasting contribution to the fight against material and spiritual poverty, according to Tearfund.
1.     Encourage Spiritual Passion – Fundamental to giving our best to our communities is keeping faith at the heart of what we do. In other words, put God first in all you do!
2.     Aim for Professional Excellence – God inspires and equips us to give people our absolute best. Set and maintain the highest standards in your work; be prepared to undertake training and gain qualifications where necessary; be strategic in your planning and delivery; and ensure your team are thriving and fulfilling their capabilities.
3.     Be Strategic – Being strategic encompasses so much more than planning. It’s about taking time to continually seek God’s wisdom about the project; turning your ‘big picture’ into a detailed workable plan with achievable objectives; and being able to monitor, evaluate, reflect, adapt and change as you go.
4.     Create Sustainability – To be around for the long haul, it’s vital to focus on sustainability rather than short-term fundraising needs. This means: finding ways to sustain and nurture the vision; being strategic; nurturing your team and building in safeguards so you/they don’t burn out; and exploring ideas to create reliable income streams that help to outwork your vision.
5.     Nurture Your Team – Nurturing your team goes beyond just investing in your staff and volunteers so that they give a good return. Developing your team means having a genuine Christ-like love and concern for them.
6.     Protect Against Burnout – The more you do in your community, the more needs you will see and the more demands can be placed on your time. To make sure you don’t overstretch yourself and end up burnt out, safeguards should be put in place for you and your team to ensure your physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.
7.     Involve Your Community – Involving your community in a serious, considered and on-going way goes far beyond just asking them what their needs are. Making a long-term commitment to community involvement includes finding ways to maintain relationships with key stakeholders and blessing others who are working like you to bless your community.
8.     Communicate Your Christian Distinctive – Your project will stand out from many other services in your community because it is prompted by your faith. This means working on how to explain your vision orally and in writing. Ensure that your words and deeds communicate the same thing.
9.     Sow Into Others – As you seek to bless your community, be ready to encourage, empower and equip other Christians, churches and projects in your area to help transform lives together. You can support others financially, with advice and guidance, through prayer and friendship, and with training.
10.  Keep The Heart Right – Keep your heart right in all you do. To do this, you need to stay focused on God and get strength from Him, ensure you’re getting sufficient rest time, find ways to deal with disappointment, frustration and fatigue, be accountable to others, and stay in community and not get isolated.