Together, weâre joining God in his plan to bring lasting change to our world.
Church Engagement
Keith Draper
Church Relations Director, Chicagoland
kdraper@wr.org
Adrian Hendarta
Church Mobilizer
ahendarta@wr.org
Schedule a Conversation
You long to serve your congregation well, to effectively call and mobilize them for mission and launch them into lives committed to the most vulnerable.
How can you inspire your congregants to âBe The Churchâ seven days a week? To go out into all the world as disciples? And how do you, as a leader, follow your call to move your church?
These are questions many of us grapple with daily. And finding the answers can often be incredibly challenging.
But hereâs the good news. We understand, and we can help.
Empowering Local Churches
At World Relief Chicagoland, weâve been partnering with churches across the region for over 40 years, helping them join in Godâs plan to bring lasting change to our world. Our passion is to create partnerships that support and empower local churches to serve immigrants and refugees in vulnerable situations.
Today, weâre a movement of over 400 churches, across Chicagoland, fostering stability and integration for immigrants and refugees in vulnerable situations.
Start, Rise, Stand
Together, we can expand your congregationâs understanding of what it means to love, serve and learn from immigrants and refugees, as well as guide your church through a process we call START, RISE, and STAND.
START exploring what it might look like for your church to serve refugees and immigrants. We prepare an individualized plan for your congregation to learn and launch into a ministry of welcome.
RISE stands for Refugee and Immigrant Sunday Emphasis. We partner with you to design and deliver a customized event or program that will help your congregation understand Godâs heart for refugees and immigrants.
STAND with refugees and immigrants by taking what youâve learned from your RISE event and putting it into action to welcome refugees and immigrants in the community.
7 Reasons We Believe The Church Can Change The World
We believe that when the church is mobilized to achieve its full potential, it has the power to change our world. We believe this because:
- The local church is Godâs plan to reveal his mercy, compassion and truth to people around the world.
- The local church is the largest social network on the planet and has the ability, authority and permanency to do far more than any government institution or non-profit organization could.
- The local church is led by local, trusted community leaders â those with an inside voice and understanding that no outside organization can bring.
- The local church has the influence and moral authority to shape behaviors rooted in biblical values of love, compassion and justice.
- The local church offers the greatest hope of reconciliation between classes, tribes, ethnicities and political parties, unifying people under a common identity in Christ.
- The local church can restore dignity and bring hope to the suffering, forgotten and marginalized by reaching out to the most vulnerable in its community and answering Godâs call to love.
- The local church is empowered by the Holy Spirit to do more than human wisdom and efforts could ever possibly accomplish alone.
Testimonials
âChurch health canât be defined by attendance or budgets alone. Rather, by how well our congregation is loving their neighbors and coming alongside the most vulnerable in our community and around the world. As a partner, World Relief has played an important role in equipping and mobilizing our church to step into the lives of the vulnerable both here and around the world.â
â Nathan Nelson, Missions Pastor
Schedule a Conversation
Looking for a representative for an event?
Our team would love to partner with you. Let's have a conversation about what partnership looks like for your church.
If you have a specific event or program in mind, fill out the request form and we will connect with you soon.
âFor WE are Godâs handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.â Ephesians 2:10
Recent Church Blog Posts
Experiencing God’s Generosity Through the Hands of Others
Before long, students will soon be ready to go back to school! This includes refugee and immigrant families, and you and I have a great opportunity if we open our hearts in support. Reflecting on this mid-summer season, I want to share a story from my own family about how God takes care of those…
Building a Summer of Welcome
Summer is right around the corner! Itâs the season of graduation parties, life transitions, and changing ministry rhythms. In the midst of all that, my team has been wondering, How can your church keep serving and welcoming our immigrant and refugee neighbors through the summer season â and have some fun along the way?  Hereâs one…
The Act of Sacrificial Love
This month, about 100 people will arrive as refugees at our offices in Chicagoland from countries like Afghanistan, Syria, Burma and others. As we prepare for Holy Week, I canât help but reflect on Godâs lavish and magnificent love for each of these individuals and the opportunity we have to show sacrificial love. I was…
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