Seeking Shalom in Lincoln Heights
At New Life Church, we believe that Jesus’ work in our lives is not just something we celebrate on Sunday mornings: it’s something that defines our whole life. We believe that Jesus calls us to call us to be a part of bringing his kingdom shalom to our work, neighborhood, city, and world.
We currently are working to bring shalom in our context in three ways on three very different levels, along the lines of this model here
Helping Individuals
At New Life, we believe that every person is made in the image of God, meaning that they have dignity and purpose in their life. Our goal is to see all people in our church and extended community restored to purposes God created them to pursue
Mutual Aid Effort
During COVID, our church spearheaded a mutual aid effort to help those who were economically in distress with the resources that we have as a church. We know that while many aspects of our lives have gone back to normal, there are still many ways in which folks in our midst are still hurting from the impacts of COVID and other crisis.
If you are in need or know someone in our church who is in need, please do not hesitate to reach out. Also, please do not hesitate to reach out if you have resources (a car, technology, financial resources) that can be used to help those in need!
Academic Resources (Coming Soon!)
Building Institutions
One of the redemptive things we have seen in the wake of COVID is that we have heard many people in our church and community share a renewed vision and ideas for initiatives they can start in the community: restaurants, side hustles, programs for kids, and many more.
In response to these new ideas and visions, we are excited to re-launch a program individuals in our church helped start two years ago: Elevate Equity. Elevate Equity exists to empower non-traditional entrepreneurs to design successful and sustainable ventures that can impact our city for good.
If you currently have a small business, a non-profit program, or any idea, we want to listen to you and what resources you need to turn that idea into a reality. So we are putting together a focus group that will meet after church to give us a chance to listen to you and make sure we can best design an approach that will serve you well!
Changing Systems
Faith in Housing Coalition
Our church is a part of a larger effort to address the broader problem of housing affordability in our city, If you are interested in joining us this summer as we do a joint-life group on the subject of housing, or just want to join our email listserv, please fill out the link below!
Local Politics 101 Webinar
Last fall, we asked some of our church leaders to put on a webinar that would help explain how local politics work and how we as a church can faithfully navigate the political systems that impact our lives and community
Pastor Chirs Teaching on Politics
Last Fall, Our Pastor Chris also had the chance to share some of the reflections he has developed over time on the ways we as Christians are called to act in the political arena. Watch below to see each of the series of four talks he gave: