Respond Biblically Together 

Step 1: Creating a Response Growth Plan/Strategy 

Scripture Foundation 

Habakkuk 2:2, Colossians 1:10, Matthew 5:48, Psalm 92:12, 1 Corinthians 3:6, Ephesians 2:21, 2 Corinthians 10:15 

Be Informed 

What happens to you in an emergency and your ability to respond depends on having the right information at the right time.

• Should we stay and shelter-in-place or should we go?
• I have something to give; where should I send it?
• What can we do to help people? What are the biggest needs?
• Where do we go if we can’t stay home?
• When I give money, how will it be used?
• When is it safe to go back to our home?
• How long will we need to wait?
• If we house people in our church, will we be reimbursed?
• When someone solicits our church for help in crisis, what is the best approach?
• Who is in charge of a disaster response?
• What does FEMA do?

Getting the answers to these questions can be complicated. Agencies have different areas of responsibility. In an emergency, communication can originate from numerous sources. Non-profits will begin running pre-planned fundraising drives. In some cases, the money may not go to the disaster, but go to meet general fundraising goals. To get your answers, you need a plan for getting information that includes local, state, regional, and national information

Local Information: 

Locally, radio and television will provide information, however no single station covers every area. Identify the media outlets that cover your area in advance. For iPhone users, an application streams emergency services radio communications to your phone.

• CEN members can opt-in to receive national, regional, and local information prepared by CEN National, local ReadyCity, and ReadyChurch.
• CEN National - during national disasters with 24/7 media coverage, the CEN Communications Director stays in direct contact with Homeland Security and other agencies involved in response.
• CEN Alerts - short email announcements draw members’ attention with important messages from a variety of sources.
• CEN Advisories - recommendations on Emergency Pray-Care-Share responses to crisis and disaster.
• CEN National Emergency Prayer Alerts – issued in partnership with National Day of Prayer and DHS. Sign up here.

On a regional level, the county Sheriff’s Office is a good source of information. The Sheriff’s Office is often used as a communications hub for multi-agency operations involving Fire, Ambulance, Police, and First Responder Services. Services like www.nixle.com offer free text message services originating from local sources in your area like the Sheriff’s Office. 

National Information: 

On a national level, the government provides information through several sources.

• www.fema.gov provides the latest information on disaster response efforts
•  www.cdc.gov provides the latest on health issues and response to pandemics 

Response Growth Plan 

Once you have completed the ReadyChristian Capacity Assessment, you will meet with your partner to develop a growth plan and then send out an announcement to family members and those in your personal response network explaining your readiness efforts. 

Readiness begins by confessing a need to prepare and letting others hold you accountable to those plans. 

God bless you as you honestly determine how to carry out Christ’s mission in good times and bad. 

Create a personal growth response plan and discuss with your response partner. 

ReadyChristian Growth Response Plan 

Growth requires commitment and planning. You’ve made the commitment and assessed readiness and capacity. Now, it’s time to make a growth plan and share it with your family and Response Partner. 

Complete the following steps to announce and schedule your growth.

1. Meet with Response Partner
2. Announce Action Steps

In meeting with your Response Partner, discuss the results of your ReadyChristian Capacity Assessment and the steps to improve readiness. During the meeting, you should help each other plan for growth:

1. Discuss the results of the ReadyChristian Capacity Assessment
2. List all the ways that you will take action to improve capacity and raise your readiness profile. 

Discuss your capacity inventory and ways to build capacity in these areas:

1. Situation Analysis
2. Volunteer Services
3. Professional Volunteer Services
4. Equipment
5. Experience
6. Review the “Working through Denial” Article in the Handout section 

Schedule action steps for Emergency Preparedness and Response Planning.

The steps are:

1. Read the home plan material and complete Communications Plan and Evacuation Plan.
2. Scan vital documents and load them to a memory stick attached to my keys.
3. Inventory our supplies using the survival list including spiritual aids for non-believers.
4. Make a Home Safety and Security Plan.
5. Family Meeting I: discuss what supplies we need to have on hand and in our car and prepare individual, car, and home kits.
6. Family Meeting II: Practice Communications and Evacuation Plans
7. Family Meeting III: Practice Home Safety and Security Plans

1. Spiritual
2. Emotional
3. Mental
4. Physical 

Announce Action Steps 

Your family and response network will need to be informed of your plans that involve them and given time to prepare. Adapt the following letter to announce your desired schedule for growth and to invite them to a family meeting in which you will set your plan in motion. You can invite your family and friends to join the network and be included in your Personal Emergency Network under the "People" tab in the network section of the CEN site. 

Letter of Invitation 

Dear Family (and Response Network), 

Out of love for you and our family, I believe God is directing me to help us work together to develop a well-practiced emergency plan should any number of emergencies occur. As is often the case, we put off things we know we need to do until it is too late. I am inviting you to attend a family meeting on _________ to discuss what our family plans should be if there is an emergency such as where to meet, what supplies to have on hand, what each one of us will do, and when. 

We can make this a fun, meaningful time as we prepare to not only help each other to survive and share our faith well during those times, but also to prepare to help others who may feel hopeless. 

Our family is our first line of defense. Let’s get started today. My proposed schedule:

1. [Deadline] Read the home plan material and complete Communications Plan and Evacuation Plan.
2. [Deadline] Scan vital documents and load them to a memory stick attached to my keys.
3. [Deadline] Inventory our supplies using the survival list including spiritual aids for non-believers.
4. [Deadline] Make a Home Safety and Security Plan.
5. [Date and time] Family Meeting I: Discuss what supplies we need to have on hand and in our car and prepare individual, car and home kits.
6. [Date and time] Family Meeting II: Practice Communications and Evacuation Plans.
7. [Date and time] Family Meeting III: Practice Home Safety and Security Plans.
8. [Date and time] All other action steps 

Please join me in this by signing up to the Christian Emergency Network. 

I am asking that you hold me accountable for my growth in areas that are vital to emergency response and recovery and to be a part of a plan to respond to emergencies, big or small, as a faithful Christ-follower. 

With Love, 

Me 

Step 2: ReadyChristian Capacity Assessment