READYCHURCH | GET STARTED | OVERVIEW

Welcome

“First, I tell you to pray for all people, asking God for what they need and being thankful to him. Pray for rulers and for all who have authority so that we can have quiet and peaceful lives full of worship and respect for God. This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to know the truth.” -I Timothy 2:1-4

This Training Includes

• Getting Started Video (In development)
• Types of Emergencies big and small
• Exposition on Nehemiah
• Statistics

The ReadyChurch Training is designed to help you lead your church to be spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically prepared to respond to emergencies both large and small.

A ReadyChurch is one that is aware of the times, prepared personally, and stands together in any crisis to share the love and Hope of Christ.

Why is ReadyChurch needed?

Following 9/11, a group of Christian leaders recognized that:

People were streaming in to churches to try and make sense of the tragedy, Churches, in general, were not prepared for the sudden influx of people Churches were not prepared to answer the questions people had

About 80% of the people who came in to churches following 9/11 left a few weeks later.

As churches and ministries gathered to discuss how to better prepare to be ready in times of disaster they quickly realized that the church at large has become divided, each working to accomplish their own, specific God given goals. The reality of it is that the Church at large to work together to accomplish their goals. Spiritually speaking, the walls of the church have been broken down.

Nehemiah provides the biblical example of Biblical Readiness and Church Leadership. Nehemiah returned to restore the city of Jerusalem (that Jeremiah accurately predicted would be destroyed). While rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he marked off sections of the wall to be rebuilt and to be guarded by the families living nearby. In doing so, Jerusalem recovered from destruction and desolation while fending off constant attacks from enemies. For most of the 52-day rebuilding project, builders worked with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other.

Today, the “spiritual walls” of our communities need rebuilding. Nehemiah offers a process and plan for responding. His defeated city had lain in ruins for 70 years. Recent disasters added to the devastation. Fires had ravaged the city and the walls were broken down. Nehemiah becomes impressed that he should do something to rebuild. Through prayer, courage, and taking action, Nehemiah leads the people of Israel. It takes 17 steps to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, repel attacks, deal with crisis, and restore Israel to a Holy relationship with God.

Similarly to the times of Nehemiah, the Church must unite together to fulfill the heart of God in today’s world, establishing His kingdom on earth, building the walls of protection around itself while sharing the heart of God with the lost.

The Church is Uniquely Positioned with the Answer

Secular readiness campaigns focus primarily on the physical readiness of the private and public sectors of our communities. And, while this is important, there is a preparedness that is greater if we are to make an eternal impact on those we minister to in crisis – a distinctly Christian readiness that cares for others in addition to self, Biblical Readiness. As Christians, we must have a balance of all four areas (spiritual, emotional, mental and physical); and it begins with a grounded personal relationship with Jesus Christ that allows us to trust in faith for rescue and protection, as well as the strength to help others around us. It is also important as believers that we are realistically knowledgeable of the risks and capacities within our grasp and have skills in emotional stamina to recover from crisis. All four areas of spiritual, emotional, mental and physical preparedness are important. Any one weak area will affect all the others. It is our faith in Christ that allows us to face any crisis head-on. Without Him, we will fall short - either immediately, or within days or years.

According to a 2001 survey published in the New England Journal of Medicine, 90% of those in crisis ask “Where is God in this?” People either turn toward Him or away from Him - sometimes for a lifetime. Are we prepared to give an answer in word and action? As Christians, it is not enough to have all of this strength and then withhold it or hide it; we must share it with others who are facing their own crisis too. We are co-laborers with Christ as others seek to find victory over tragedies. We cannot do it alone, and neither can others. There is a Biblical Standard that we must live out obediently as faithful followers of Christ in order that we may be found pleasing to Him.

While we may not have ever thought about it this way, there is a Biblical Readiness Standard of measurement that scriptures have clearly laid out for us in both the Old and New Testaments. Whether it is the modeling of Nehemiah rebuilding the spiritual walls of unity by working together to restore the church; or Noah, focusing on a huge family project by preparing the ark as God had specifically laid out for their protection and ours; or Joseph who, under great duress, did not fail to prepare for the days ahead. The Bible gives us role models to understand our times and circumstances - to get ourselves totally ready in mind, body and soul to survive, that we may stand strong in crisis so that others may find Hope in Christ too.

How do we, as Christians, become Biblically ready to first survive, then thrive, and finally respond in faith to others around us when crisis comes?

As a church, we may have blurred the Biblical Readiness Standard by leaving off one or two elements and expecting to have the same result. At times, we may have viewed walking across our street to meet our neighbor who just lost their husband as going into the lion’s den, therefore dismissing that God still expects that from His believers. God calls us to first be grounded in Him by putting on the full armor of God, then to be salt and light in the midst of our own crisis as well as the painful experiences of others. A

truly ReadyChurch understands the Biblical Readiness Standard and intentionally prepares its flock to meet that standard. It assesses realistically its own level of preparedness in those four key areas and then begins a process to celebrate its strengths while simultaneously rebuilding its weaknesses.

The ReadyChurch Training will assist you in assessing your church’s level of readiness, setting up an emergency team to keep the growth moving forward, as well as managing your church’s own emergency- related ministry to include its own security. The ReadyChurch Church Emergency Team is structured using the Incident Command Structure that is used by emergency management. This entails seamless integration when a church responds to local incidents. The training will help your church develop emergency response plans so that when a crisis occurs, your ministry infrastructure may still remain intact just when you need to minister most. CEN also makes available a complete ReadyChristian campaign in order to prepare your congregation personally as well as corporately.

The goal of the ReadyChurch Training is to develop Christians and local church bodies to become spiritually, emotionally, mentally as well as physically ready to respond to emergencies as faithful Christ- followers by praying for survivors, caring for survivors, and sharing with them the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

The Bible gives us a standard for our lives. In this section, you will learn about true biblical readiness. You will learn that we become stronger working together than we are separately when we partner with other churches, Christian organizations and media to support and hold each other accountable for readiness in the Church, in the life of each congregant, and in your community emergency outreach.

You will train the Church Emergency Team (CET) Officers to lead in the development of a church emergency plan, its training, and the oversight of emergency responses within your church as well as the church's outward responses to emergencies near and far.

You will be provided with material for an 8-week promotion of the Ready Church Campaign. The CET and church leaders will pave the way by completing their personal preparedness assessment using the CEN Ready Christian Track.

Biblical readiness means being spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically ready to respond to emergencies as faithful Christ-followers by praying, caring for survivors, and sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

Biblical Readiness Requires

• Assessment of the Church and the Times We Live In - measuring the current readiness of Christians, the church, and community...and establishing a plan to be ready to respond. Biblical Example: Jeremiah, testing the metal of God's people.
• Activation Areas - geographic areas in which Christians, churches and/or Christian organizations together take responsibility to approach emergencies by networking, preparing and responding. For churches, this is a suggested five-mile radius around the church. Biblical Example: Nehemiah, rebuilding the walls.
• Agreement between Christ-followers - covenants and commitments to care for each other in crisis and disaster. Biblical Example: Mordecai and Esther - "for such a time as this."
• Resilience - spiritual, emotional, mental and physical resilience gained through the daily practice of worship, prayer and obedience to God. Biblical Example: Jesus' life on the road to the cross, and the full armor of God concept.
• Prayer - Care - Share Lifestyle - to live as examples of the saving grace of Jesus Christ by actively praying and caring for others, and then sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ...before, during and after a crisis or disaster. Biblical Example: Paul before King Agrippa.

The Biblical Readiness Standard provides a yardstick for unity in crisis and disaster. Apply the Biblical Readiness Standard to the suggested five-mile radius around your church answering these questions:

What is required for us to live up to this standard as a church?

Who are the other Christians we can join with to live up to this standard?

What is the Biblical Readiness Standard?

Living for Christ intentionally, giving light, hope and help to those around us in crisis takes more than physical readiness. We need to be biblically ready.

Biblical Readiness is spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically ready to respond to emergencies as faithful Christ-followers, praying, caring for survivors and sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

The practice of Biblical Readiness requires Christians to meet four standards:

1. Responsiveness – the ability to assess the times, hear God and act

2. Engagement – pre-planning and agreement among Christians to help each other

3. Resilience – the strength to follow through

4. Replication – a growing capacity to respond through training and equipping others to be biblically ready

Biblical Readiness Standard

The world is changing. To dismiss this is an unhealthy denial of reality. To embrace uncertain times and trust God is healthy and mature. Our mission is to assist those who are ready to face reality, take simple basic steps to prepare for emergencies, and be ready to give an answer for the hope we have in Jesus Christ. The Biblical Readiness Standard provides a yardstick for unity in crisis and disaster and helps us understand God’s plan for Ready Christians and a Ready Church. Biblical Readiness requires:

Responsiveness – measuring personal readiness and the current readiness of Christians, the Church, the community, and the times to establish a plan to be ready to respond.

Biblical example: Jeremiah, testing the metal of God’s people.

Engagement – covenants and commitments made to care for others during crisis and disaster in defined areas of responsibility called Activation Areas. Activation Areas are geographic areas in which Christians, churches and Christian organizations take responsibility to network, prepare and respond to crisis and disaster together.

Biblical example: Nehemiah, rebuilding the walls.

Resilience – spiritual, emotional, mental and physical resilience gained through: keeping covenants and commitments, the daily practice of worship - prayer - and - obedience to God, practicing emergency responses of all kinds, and responding as God leads in prayer.

Biblical example: Mordecai and Esther – for such a time as this and the Full Armor of God.

Replication – to live as examples of the saving grace of Jesus Christ actively praying and caring for others and sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ…before, during and after crisis or disaster.

Biblical example: Jesus’ life on the road to the cross and Paul before King Agrippa.

As you learn about Biblical Readiness, please answer these two questions:

What is required to live up to this standard? Who can I join in living up to this standard?

The steps you follow determine your own level of readiness and help you grow in areas you may be weak. God always gives you a choice. CEN prays you will follow the pathway that we have learned is effective, and that you will partner with at least one other person who will walk with you.

In the downloadable material, you will find more in-depth descriptions of the Responsiveness, Engagement, Resilience, and Replication components of the Biblical Readiness Standard. The Biblical Readiness Role Model Study Guide will encourage you to dive deep into scriptures to understand Biblical Readiness and how it was used in Bible days as well as to draw connections with how it can be applied today.

Biblical Readiness Assessment

Becoming a ReadyChurch starts with a foundation of Biblical Readiness. Understanding Biblical Readiness is great! But how do we apply it? As a Christian? As a church? The first thing we need to do is understand where we currently are in the Biblical Readiness process. CEN has developed a Biblical Readiness Assessment with seven potential outcomes that will help you identify where you are in the Biblical Readiness preparedness process.

Take the ReadyChurch Readiness Assessment in the downloadable material section on the Landing Page to determine how ready your church is. We’ve also provided a ReadyChristian Readiness Assessment as well to determine your individual level of Biblical Readiness. Once you take the assessment, you can read the results of the outcomes below.

The ReadyChurch Biblical Readiness Assessment assesses the spiritual, emotional, mental and physical readiness of your church and ranks your results with seven possible outcomes. Those outcomes include:

• Detached - haven't thought much about readiness, not on the radar
• Reluctant - you do what you have to, not a priority
• Challenged - looking to do more, but what?
• Responsive - you are learning how to endure and meet physical needs
• Engaged - responding to crisis but are lacking structure and skills
• Resilient - aware, ready and there to give a biblical response to crisis and disaster
• Replicating - reproducing results with partner churches and building capacity in the community

Maybe you have given some thought to emergencies by planning evacuation routes from the church, screening volunteers, participating in blood drives or even responding to disasters. But are you ready to respond biblically?

Biblical Readiness means being spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically ready to respond to emergencies as faithful Christ-followers by praying, caring for survivors and sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

Ready to Respond?

The evidence is clear –God is in the process of waking up the world to the fact that it cannot live without Him. Ready Christians face these uncertain times with faith and hope. In crisis, unprepared Christians and non-Christians come to rely on the help of the Ready Church. Are you ready to respond when you meet people who need His mercy and simply cannot live without Him because of a financial, family or faith crisis? Are you ready to respond to a disaster?

Readiness is essential to fulfilling our mandate to share the hope of Christ. The facts are:

• What we become before any emergency will dictate how we survive, recover and help others.
• The basis of Biblical Readiness is one's spiritual health going into any crisis.
• More and more emergencies demand our attention today whether they are economic, increasing natural disasters, or man-made threats; we live in an increasingly dangerous time.
• Community-wide emergencies, crises that affect everyone around you - like a teen suicide, public scandal by a leader, collapse of the economy, and disasters tap out the personal reserve of the unprepared, leaving the hope-filled and ready believer to lead people into recovery and restoration.
• Biblically ready people have personal resiliency and a better survival chance.
• Ready Christians are God’s ambassadors to others in crisis, bringing hope and calm to a totally out- of-control situation.

God requires for each of us to give Him glory in all situations. Regardless of the emergency, building spiritual – emotional – mental - and - physical readiness protects our lives and the mission of the Church, and positions Christians to serve others in their most desperate hour.

As you complete the ReadyChristian and ReadyChurch Training you will become increasingly responsive, engaged, resilient and able to replicate your faith in others.

What is the goal of Biblical Readiness?

The goal of Biblical Readiness is to develop resiliency. Resiliency is defined as the ability to recover. The more prepared a person is, the more resilient they are. So what does this look like?

Understanding Spiritual, Emotional, Mental and Physical (SEMP) Resiliency

Spiritual Resilience

Spiritual resilience is the ability to stay true to our relationship with Jesus Christ under all circumstances, and to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Spiritual resilience develops as we:

• Put on the full armor of God
• Live in the Light
• Stay alert and prayerful
• Stay on guard
• Share the Good News

Put on the Full Armor of God – Ephesians 6:10-29

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the

rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Daily, we must “put on” the strength and protection that is ours through Jesus Christ. This is done by prayer in the power of the Holy Spirit and by meditating on these things:

• Jesus Christ is the truth, the foundation our faith is built upon, the Good News for the world and a source of strength to repel our enemies. He gives us His power to stand our ground.
• The Righteousness of our Holy God is like body armor that protects us when we obey Him.
• God’s peace that passes all understanding steadies us as we courageously do His will like a well- made pair of shoes gives us stability to run fast.
• Faith (trusting and depending on Him for everything) blocks the salvos of the enemy, like battle armor on a tank that deflects an RPG.
• Salvation (the fact that Jesus rescued us from sin) keeps us humble, levelheaded and protects our thinking. Like a good helmet, it keeps us from losing our minds. When stress mounts, we look again to Jesus for salvation.
• God’s Word – the testimony, promises and instruction found in scripture is the tool we have for defeating lies and overcoming godlessness. It is like a powerful weapon that slices right through the lies of the enemy.
• Praying alert and in the power of the Holy Spirit gives us the right words and the boldness to explain God’s Good News for Everyone.

Live in the Light - 1 Thessalonians 5:8

“Let us live in the light, think clearly protected by the body of the armor of faith and love, and wearing our helmet of confidence in our salvation.”

Tragedies bring all kinds of pain, darkness and turmoil. It is often the point at which transformation can take place in the heart. The very nature of crisis forces us to seek God or to turn from Him in despair.

According to a 2001 survey published in the New England Journal of Medicine, ninety percent {90%} of all people in crisis will ask, "Where is God in this?"

By living in the Light of Christ, we prepare to shed light on difficult events in the lives of others. When we live in the Light of Christ we are protected. But the child of God who has never found the light is not protected and cannot, in confidence, share the truth of the Gospel.

Living in the light requires humility and daily seeking God. We must ask God and others we trust to help us think clearly, asking:

• Am I living in peace, to the best of my ability, with friends, family and co-workers and acquaintances?
• Am I working like I am working for God? Am I giving my best?
• Am I living a balanced life?
• Am I giving generously to others and Christ's cause?
• Am I growing and improving?
• Am I forgiving to others and myself? Do I get right back up when I fail or do I beat myself up first? Do I extend grace to others who fail?

Crisis and emergencies test our faith and resolve to follow Christ. However, they are also an opportunity to dramatically and unforgettably meet the needs of survivors with the love of Christ.

Christ loves us in three ways:

1. He takes up our pain and troubles as His own, seeking God in prayer for answers to our problems.
2. He cares for us while taking time to explain how we can be set free from the sin that plagues us in order to live with God eternally.
3. He pays the price to restore our relationship with God.

Christ-followers have the same task. We are commanded to do the same things Jesus did

1. See what is happening with people around us. Seek God's purpose in prayer and offer help.

2. Ask for the opportunity to explain how they can be set free of sin's reign and live with God eternally.

3. Demonstrate sacrificially the love of Christ.

Being alert means looking for ways to care that melts a heart and creates the opportunity to share why we care so much.

Share the Good News! 2 Timothy 4:2

"Preach the Word of God. Be persistent, whether the time is favorable or not."

To get good at something requires practice, as does sharing our faith. You don't get many opportunities to practice sharing faith in crisis and disaster, so you will need to practice whenever you can.

Emotional Resilience

Emotional resilience is the ability to stay calm under pressure and to manage our fears. Emotions tell us when things are going well or not, and in times of stress or high performance {like a crisis or disaster} our emotions can overwhelm us if we are unprepared. Three things lead to emotional resilience:

1. Rest and Recreation - Our bodies and minds are renewed through periods of low activity and through a change in normal routines. Emotional resilience develops with proper amounts of both. When required to stretch to the limit, we will have reserves if we have been looking out for our needs along the way. For those who regularly max themselves out, crisis and disaster can break them emotionally. Rest and recreation are also needed during crisis and disaster, too.

2. Healthy Relationships - With a combination of a support group, trusted friendships and a close family, we can weather many storms. Emotional well-being results from healthy relationships. As Christ-followers, we must work diligently to rebuild broken relationships in the power of the Holy Spirit. In crisis, healthy relationships can bring us through the roughest challenges and give us courage to help others. The most important relationship to maintain is with Jesus Christ.

3. Recovery and Restoration - Bad things happen, and unless we go through a process of recovery and restoration, the effects of the damage can linger - inability to focus, keep a job or manage our relationships. Recovery means the establishment of a new "normal." When a crisis or disaster no longer dominates daily life, we have recovered. Ideally, recovery ends with restoration to a new or renewed relationship with Jesus Christ, family members, friends and the community.

Mental Resilience

Mental resilience is the ability to know what to do and to make good choices in difficult situations. Sometimes called "mental toughness," mental resilience develops in three ways:

1. The application of principles and values - We do not always have the advantage of past experience to guide decisions. Life principles and values must guide decisions in new situations or when we are forced to make snap decisions.

2. Acquiring accurate knowledge and information - Things are not as bad or good as they seem. Knowledge with up-to-date information spares us a lot of trouble and helps us understand "when" and "how" to serve others.

3. Pre-planning - Most emergency responses cannot be learned in a crisis. The pilot cannot begin studying how to operate the ejector seat when the plane is going down. Pre-planning ensures the maximum ability to serve.

Physical Resilience

Physical resilience is the ability to stay alive in difficult situations and to maintain health during normal times.

Physical resilience requires:

1. Adequate supplies of food, water and medicine

2. Protective gear and clothing

3. Fitness training

4. Shelter

5. Transportation

6. Communications

God bless you as you become ready to respond!

ReadyChristian Biblical Readiness Standard

Living for Christ intentionally, giving light, hope and help to those around us in crisis takes more than physical readiness. We need to be biblically ready.

Biblical Readiness is spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically ready to respond to emergencies as faithful Christ-followers, praying, caring for survivors and sharing the hope we have in Jesus Christ.

The practice of biblical readiness requires Christians to meet four standards:

1. Responsiveness – the ability to assess the times, hear God and act

2. Engagement – pre-planning and agreement among Christians to help each other

3. Resilience – the strength to follow through

4. Replication – a growing capacity to respond through training and equipping others to be biblically ready

Readiness Scale:

1. (72+) Replicating – reproducing results with other Christians and building capacity in the community
2. (64 – 71) Resilient – aware, ready and there to give a biblical response to crisis and disaster
3. (56 – 63) Engaged – responding to crisis but lacking structure and skills
4. (48 – 55) Responsive – you are learning how to endure and meet physical needs
5. (40 – 47) Challenged – looking to do more, but what?
6. (30 – 39) Reluctant – you do what you have to, not a priority
7. (0 – 29) Detached – haven’t thought much about readiness; not on the radar