Care For One Another

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”  John 13:34 & 35 NIV®.

Jesus is our example of how to love one another. In the Bible we have example after example of how he did this: he healed people, he placed value on people that others rejected and commands us to do the same.  Showing love is not a charitable choice, it is a commandment to just and right living. It is every Christian’s calling. Click here to read more about biblical justice. 

One Another Care follows the example of Jesus and fulfils the mandate for ministry for the whole body of Christ – the church. A church that demonstrates ‘One Another Care’ will become a healthy, loving and restorative community that is welcoming to others. Such care may be formally expressed in structured Health and Pastoral Care ministries. Click here to read more.

If you feel you need some training and resources to care for one another, we can help.

We can help you and your church build biblical understanding of caring for one another and the power of hope, connection and community.

Training

Read more about health and pastoral care ministry – what it is, continuum or care, and the Biblical principles underpinning it, by clicking here.

Your church can build upon this foundation of caring for one another with training models that promote friendship and inclusion, coaching/mentoring using strength-based approaches, and specific skill training to effectively support your community’s vulnerable people. Click the links below to learn more.

• On Earth as it is in Heaven – resources on Biblical justice for churches
• One Another Care – equip people to journey with vulnerable people of all ages 
• Connections Workshop – Follow Connecting and Including all with  with a ‘Connections’ workshop purposely created for your unique community, celebrate what works, identify barriers, brainstorm solutions and create a plan for moving forward as a more inclusive community
• Becoming an Informed Friend – journeying 1:1 with a person living with disability or a chronic condition
• Coaching for Healthy Living – coaching to promote wellbeing and balance in seven interconnected life dimensions 
• Prepared to Share – preparing churches to support people living with mental distress
• Sharing together – informed friend with a person living with mental distress  
• Be Care – explores how churches can add a health dimension to pastoral care and use health practitioners in the pastoral care team using Faith Community Nursing as an exemplar
• My Choices – resource and workshop to help people think about personal preferences and practical preparations that facilitate quality end of life support

Other workshops, seminars, masterclasses and conferences – covering a range of topics based on some of the common issues people experience in life, self-care and pastoral care skill masterclasses, eg.

• Mental health and suicide prevention 
• Ageing in the community
• Supporting people with chronic conditions
• Relationship breakdown
• Loss and grief
• Single parenting
• Issues facing children and youth
• Trauma informed approaches to care
• Boundaries and setting limits
• Self-care
• Reflective practice

Baptist Care SA is willing to provide the training FREE to Baptist Churches including the provision of advertising material and participants workbooks at a time and place to suit your needs. The church needs to provide the venue including setting and packing up, refreshments, and secure 8-10 participants. 

Resources to care for one another

To help you provide practical support we offer the following resources:

• ‘On Earth as it is in Heaven’  – A Teaching Series on biblical justice to deepen an understanding of the scriptural foundations upon which our churches are building just communities we focus on four vulnerable people groups – people from a refugee background, experiencing homelessness, living with mental health issues and people exiting the prison system 
• ‘Belonging together on earth’ – Explores a theology of belonging that can be outworked within our local churches and communities focusing on a fifth group of vulnerable people – people living with disabilities and their carers
• ‘Connections resources’ – 10 practical guides for inclusion using the voices of people living with disability to provide their top tips for inclusion, providing information, personal stories and examples that work for local churches. 

For help getting started or growing your health, pastoral care and related outreach ministries please contact our team:
Dr. Anne van Loon, (08) 8177 4905 (Mon-Wed), avanloon@baptistcaresa.org.au
Vicky Legge, (08) 8177 4905 (Tues-Thurs), vlegge@baptistcaresa.org.au