Church Crisis Relief Plan

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Church Crisis Relief Plan

• Preparing Your Church to
• Respond to Crisis
• Presented by the
• NCN District Chaplain Resource Team

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• In the wake of the September 11 terrorist
  attacks, Americans pulled together in silent acts
  of heroism.
• Such heroism is also seen as people respond to
  needs arising from natural disasters such as
  hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods and
  other natural disasters.

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Research and practical experience shows

• 94 of Americans believe in God or in
• some superior power.
• The majority of those experiencing crisis will
• turn to their faith for comfort and support.
• Therefore, many will turn to God and the
• Church for practical assistance, comfort,
• and questions of eternal importance.

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Warning!

• Government officials regularly warn us of the
• possibility of more conflict on the horizon.
• With these possibilities in mind, along with
  the
• unpredictability of nature, the Church must
  be
• prepared to respond to the needs of their
  community
• ? not only in a spiritual way,
• ? but also with practical means,
• ? showing the love of Christ.

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Practical Resource

• The Church Crisis Relief Plan will help you
• mobilize your church and members.
• It is a starting point outlining suggestions
  for
• a ten-step plan of action
• This plan will guide you in assisting local
• emergency personnel, victims, and their
• families within the first week of a crisis.

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Ten Step Plan

• Inform the Church
• Call to Prayer
• Emergency Board Meeting
• Contact Local Relief Agencies
• Resource and Mobilize Lay Ministries
• Blood Drive Participation
• Gather Practical Response Items
• Minister to Primary and Secondary Victims
• Support United Community Efforts
• Listen to Those Around You

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1. Inform the Church

• Communicate the facts clearly and simply.
• Use a Phone tree to inform members of the
  situation, scheduled prayer meetings, and that
  the church board is determining how the church
  will respond.
• Inform the church of the Boards action plan and
  explain how they can participate.
• Keep members updated about progress with their
  action plan and how they are needed.

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2. Call to Prayer

• Call each family of your church to begin to pray
  for the situation.
• Use your phone tree to continue providing updates
  and new needs for prayer.
• Encourage people to pray for
• People affected by the crisis
• Emergency Responders
• That God will be glorified through it all

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Praise

• Although it is difficult, start with praise.
  Focus on God's character. Praise God that He is
  sovereign that He has ultimate control over all,
  and that nothing takes Him by surprise. (Isaiah
  455-7).

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Petition / Intercession

• Ask God to use this situation to bring spiritual
  openness to those affected by the tragedy.
• Ask God to guide and bless the relief ministry of
  the church.
• Ask God to empower the helpers with a powerful
  witness.
• Ask God to prevent the enemy's attempt to
  escalate unresolved anger or guilt loss.

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Petition / Intercession

• Ask God to focus the minds of public officials
  on the need for prayer.
• Ask God to equip leaders to mentor and minister
  to people.
• Ask Godfor yourself and othersfor a passion and
  love that drives out fear.
• Ask God to give you acts of kindness, compassion,
  and friendship to incorporate into your life in
  response to the crisis.

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Thanksgiving

• Thank God that the enemy has made a tactical
  error, and that God will use for good what Satan
  has intended for harm.
• Thank God for the people who will be drawn to
  seek God because the overwhelming nature of the
  tragedy.
• Thank God for a vivid reminder of your own
  mortality and vulnerability, asking Him to
  prepare your heart and spirit for a faithful
  response when you are faced with tragedy.

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3. Emergency Board Meeting

• Determine practical ways you can respond. Have
  people share ideas, then determine which ones are
  most feasible and beneficial for the situation.
• Have your group list needs to address. Come to a
  consensus by vote on the most needful problem.
• Next, list possible solutions form a consensus
  on the most feasible solution.
• List ways to implement the solution form a
  consensus on an implementation plan.
• List team leaders and specific duties they will
  perform to help the team implement the plan.
• Enlist people to assist the team leaders.

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3. Emergency Board Meeting

• 6. Create an "Action Plan Status Board" so you
  can check off items as they are completed and be
  aware of items that need extra attention.
• 7. Set a time schedule for completing the
  project.
• 8. Set periodic meetings to assess progress and
  make needful adjustments to the plan.
• 9. Have a final evaluation meeting to determine
  the success of the plan.
• 10. Determine whether the operation was
  successful or is a project that should be
  continued. If the project is completed, go back
  to step 1.

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3. Emergency Board Meeting

• Donations Appoint a team of leaders to research
  credible donor recipients. Begin with the
  District Resource Center, then contact local
  agencies. Give this information to your people so
  they can contribute through the church. Here are
  some tips.
• Beware of pressure for on-the-spot donations.
• Do not give cash.
• Ask how much of your donation will be used for
  relief and how much for other programs or
  administration.
• Access reports on national charities at
  www.give.org

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3. Emergency Board Meeting

• 5. Don't give out your credit card number.
• 6. Ask for written information that describes the
  charity's programs and finances.
• 7. Check if the organization is on
  www.guidestar.org, the search engine that powers
  www.helping.org and www.justgive.org. Guidestar
  lists over 700,000 charities that have 501-C3
  status. These groups have charitable status from
  the IRS so donations to them are tax-deductible.
• Budgeting Ask your board to provide finances for
  educational materials and resources to help
  respond to the need.

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4. Relief Agencies

• Contact local, state, and national relief
  agencies to determine the most urgent needs and
  partner with these organizations to provide
  volunteers, physical needs, shelter, clothing, or
  food.

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4. Relief Agencies

• The Salvation Army USA National Headquarters,
  P.O. Box 269, Alexandria, Virginia 22313, United
  States (off) 703-684-5500 (fax) 703-684-3478
  (web) http//www.salvationarmyusa.org
• The American Red Cross Disaster Services
  http//www.redcross.org
• American Blood Centers Call 1-888-BLOOD- 88 or
  visit www.americasblood.org

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4. Relief Agencies

• Chaplains Programs Many cities have police or
  fire services chaplains accustomed to dealing
  with crisis. Chaplain Services International
  provides Chaplain Basic Training and Certified
  Crisis Intervention training. E-mail
  roncsi_at_sbcglobal.net.
• Large Law Enforcement Agencies Many large
  metropolitan areas have highly trained teams that
  can offer training and assistance. Most rural
  areas have no services for themselves.

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Denominational Agencies

• Assemblies of God Disaster Relief helps rebuild
  Assemblies of God churches http//ag.org/benevolen
  ces/disasterrelief/index_disaster.cfm
• Convoy of Hope Contact David Auterson at
  dauterson_at_convoyofhope.org [phone]

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6. Mobilize Ministries

• Enable lay ministries and leaders with
  information to deal with crisis reactions.
  Valuable information can be found from these
  resources
• U.S. Department of Education http//www.ed.gov
• General Council of The Assemblies of God
  www.ag.org
• The American Red Cross http//www.redcross.org
• International Critical Incident Stress
  Foundation http//www.icisf.org
• The American Academy of Experts in Traumatic
  Stress http//www.aaets.org
• Citizen Corps http//www.CitizenCorps.gov.

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6. Mobilize Ministries

• Bible studies and small groups Take a short
  departure from your regularly scheduled topics
  and provide Bible studies for all ages that focus
  on a biblical response to crisis, tragedy,
  mourning, and anger.
• Organize your churchs talent pool Food
  preparation and service, building trades,
  mechanical trades, care givers, business people,
  general services.
• Partner with other churches and Christian
  organizations Organize a Care Team ministry by
  networking with other churches, businesses,
  service organizations, and schools willing to
  organize their resources and work on cooperative
  community efforts.

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6. Mobilize Ministries

• Make your facility available With some
  preparation and basic training your church
  facility can be designated a Red Cross Emergency
  Center. If a church has this designation and the
  pastor is set up as the Center Manager, then the
  church is free to not only meet the immediate
  physical needs of those who come but they are
  also free to help people with their spiritual
  needs as well, something that Red Cross does not
  address.
• Become part of the big picture Volunteer your
  services to help your community draft a
  disaster/crisis response plan. It would include
  such considerations as emergency medical needs,
  emergency housing / shelter, emergency food and
  clothing, other logistics needs like security,
  traffic control, and networking with regional
  agencies for crisis response.
• Critical Incident Intervention Counseling
  services Make a list of teams and professionals
  available in your area.

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7. Practical Response Items

• After contacting the appropriate agencies to
  determine what is needed
• Coordinate collection Gather resources to meet
  existing physical needs. This could include
  things, such as clothing , blankets, food, first
  aid supplies, coats, shoes, baby items, toys.
• Centralize the reception location Have families
  bring supplies to church to be taken to a relief
  agency at one time. Network with other churches
  and with the community to improve response.

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8. Minister to Victims

• Offer information and help for Primary
  Victims
• United States Justice Department Victims of
  Crime, 1-800-331-0075
• Crisis Counseling Provide emergency counseling
  by trained counselors for people who have been
  traumatized.
• Victim Information Publish a list of other
  organizations people can call for a variety of
  basic needs.

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8. Minister to Victims

• Offer help for Family Members of Victims
• Expressions of love and sympathy Cards, letters,
  and drawings. Include work done by children and
  youth.
• Follow-up care Place victims/families on your
  calendar for regular follow-up. Persons who have
  lost a spouse often experience adverse physical
  symptoms and/or emotional symptoms years after
  the event.

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8. Minister to Responders

• Remember First and Second Responders
• Expressions of appreciation Send cards, letters,
  and drawings to military, rescue and relief
  workers involved with the aftermath of the
  situation and to their families.
• Secondary personnel Simple acts of kindness can
  be expressed in many ways. Cookies, smiles, say
  thank you, offer help. Remember those who are
  cleaning up after a crisis have families and are
  concerned and affected by the situation, and
  appreciate a friendly face and a warm smile.

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9. Support United Efforts

• Assist in local meetings or gatherings to show
  unity of the entire community, city hall,
  business, civic groups, and churches.
• Build relationships with the emergency service
  professionals in your community BEFORE a crisis
  happens and your group will be some of the first
  called to help. Pastors and churches have to get
  out of their buildings and bridge relationships
  for the future. The police and fire departments
  are wonderful places to start.

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9. Support United Efforts

• Encourage your people to take personal
  responsibility to bring hope to your community.
• Put a visual reminder in your home or yard
  reminding your family and friends to pray.
• Have family prayer asking for Gods help and hope
  for your friends, family and country.
• Talk with your children. Give them the assurances
  they need and a chance to ask tough questions.
• Invite people to join you in church.
• Give people copies of sermons that address the
  crisis from a perspective of hope and faith.
• Mobilize neighbors to light a candle in their
  windows at the same time each night.

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10. Listen to those around you

• Listen to and watch the people around you. Your
  community might or might not be located within
  the emergency area. Secondary victims occur
  everywhere. Be ready to assist and serve them in
  whatever way necessary.
• Understand that different types of stress,
  trauma, fatigue, and victims will be present.

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10. Listen to those around you

• Four types of stress
• Eustress The good stress that keeps us
  challenged
• Occupational Stress Rest take breaks, or a
  sabbatical.
• Cumulative Stress A series of small crises that
  can accumulate and bring about an overload
  condition.
• Critical Incident Stress Our natural response to
  an abnormal situation that evokes a strong
  emotional, behavioral, physical or cognitive
  response. Crisis Intervention Counseling is
  strongly recommended.

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10. Listen to those around you

• Secondary Trauma is experienced by caregivers
  (police, fire, EMT, chaplains, pastors, or other
  volunteers) when dealing with a traumatized
  person either at the scene or elsewhere.
• Secondary Trauma Victims may also include
  witnesses of traumatic events, friends of
  victims, children who witness Domestic Violence

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10. Listen to those around you

• Vicarious Victimization is the trauma we
  experience as we watch, hear, or read the news of
  a terrible event (e.g., too much attention to the
  news concerning the terrorist attack and/or some
  other traumatic event).
• WARNING We must be careful how much of this
  tragic news we allow our children to view.

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10. Listen to those around you

• Use good trauma and crisis listening skills.
• Do not assume you know what a person needs before
  you listen to the persons story.
• Ask a few simple questions to help the person
  tell his or her story.
• Where were you when this event happened?
• How have you been feeling since the event?
• What can we do to move on from here?

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10. Listen to those around you

• Listening Skills you can use to be a better
  listener.
• Dont assume you know how the person is feeling
  or thinking.
• Listen with full attention. Do not begin to think
  of your response while the person is talking to
  you.
• Repeat or restate the persons comments to make
  sure you have heard the person correctly.
• Do not feel you must give an answer to everything
  a person says. Many people just need to talk.

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Thank You
Questions?
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For more information contact aChaplain Resource
Team member