Crisis Support Services - PO Box 393 Pinegowrie 2123 - Email: info@crisissupportservices.org
Association incorporated under Section 21. Reg. No. 2003/013210/08
Copyright Crisis Support Services 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Services Provided :: Church

Introduction

God, in His Grace and Wisdom, has ordained the Church as His instrument through which to reach the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Scripture affirms that the gates of Hell shall not overcome the church. (Mat 16:18) God has also raised up “parachurch” ministries and organisations in order to offer the Church of Christ specialised resources and/or skills, etc. Crisis Support Services is one such ministry whose task is to “come alongside” the Church and assist the church with its specialised skills or abilities.

 

Objectives of the church

The Church is the Body of Christ and has clear objectives as set forth in Scripture.

Two of these recognised objectives are:

  1. Oversee, teach, train and nurture the members of Church (1Pet 5:2)
  2. Evangelising through outreach into the community as a practical means of manifesting the love of God.( Matt 25: 35-36)

Scripture does not set out a blueprint as to how this work should be undertaken/executed. It does however indicate that the Church should be aware of current affairs, recognise opportunities and be wise in implementing a strategy through which to carry out these clear God-given objectives. The church is required to know and utilise God-given gifts, abilities, skills and training within Body of Christ in order to fulfil this task. This would imply that different local churches will and do have different ministries, strategies, etc. as each seeks to accomplish its Mandate.  

 

Crises within the Church in South Africa

 

Scripture uses the imagery of a shepherd leading his sheep. God has tasked pastors to mind His sheep which are under their care. Each pastor has the awesome responsibility of overseeing the wellbeing of each of his congregants. This charge is complex as  believers who are to be cared for and developed into the likeness of Christ are also members of a wider community. Although  as believers are not of this world, we are in the world and experience the goings-on of the community. In South Africa this task is further complicated by:

Trauma. It is common knowledge that South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world today and Christians are not exempt from this scourge. Pastors are often confronted with church members who have been victims of crime. These crimes may range from armed robberies, to hi-jackings, rapes, even murders. In addition, suicide is frequently an all too common form of death in our country.

Church members are also not exempt from suffering trauma as a result of accidents. Motor vehicle accidents are the second highest means of traumatic death in South Africa. Injury and maiming are additional negative consequences of accidents – as are accidental deaths due to downing, industrial accidents, etc. Again, church members are not immune to such occurrences.

Grief. Although crime and accidents are traumatic forms of death, the death of a loved one due to natural causes (illness, etc.) is no less heart-breaking. Today’s technology can prolong life significantly, yet this same technology is able to indicate with accuracy if one is terminally ill. It is at times like these that the patient and their family need to work through anticipatory grief and the eventuality of the patients death.

HIV/AIDS. This pandemic is facing South Africa and the church must educate its members in this regard. Churches need to concede that their members are not exempt from the threat of HIV/Aids.

Each of the above - mentioned issues carry with it not only ongoing consequences, but also the added risk of a “Faith Crisis” for the Believer. A “Faith Crisis” is the understanding that ones beliefs, perceptions, understanding and expectations of God, Christianity and the Church, etc. are directly challenged and often considered wanting.

A pastor is faced with an awful responsibility of looking after those that God has given into his/her care.  This care covers a wide range of issues and therefore it is not uncommon for the pastor to sense being a little overwhelmed with all that is happened.

 

Solution

Crisis Support Services as a parachurch ministry works alongside local churches by offering a specialised service to assist and enhance the ministries that are carried out by the churches. Crisis Support Services believes that it has a workable and effective solution to address the above mentioned needs within the church and community.

Trauma counselling

Crisis Support Services offers:

  1. Counselling and care which takes place at the home of the traumatised individual/s. This is especially helpful if the traumatic incident took place at the home as it allows the traumatised individual/s to feel supported and emotionally safe whilst confronting and working through the trauma. It also enables the counsellor to gain a first hand understanding of what happened during the event and to see the individual/s within their context/s and environment/s.  Further, it allows the traumatised individual/s to regain a sense of dominion within their home environment.
  2. Crisis Support Services offers a 24 hour 7day a week service. This means that Crisis Support Services is always prepared to respond to any emergency. This is an important factor as the trauma scene requires someone who is objective and clear thinking. Crisis Support Services aims to be at the scene of any traumatic incident within 30 minutes of receiving notification of the event.
  3. Crisis Support Services is a church ministry and therefore offers its services free of charge irrespective of who requires the service.  
  4. Crisis Support Services makes use of highly trained and experienced Christian counsellors. The staff has tertiary education in trauma care. The Director of Crisis Support Services has qualified with MA (Theol) Trauma at the University of Pretoria. He has done a lot of reading with regard to theodicy in order to assist with this issue of “faith crises”
  5. Crisis Support Services operates from a Christian perspective.
  6. Crisis Support Services is in the unique position of not only offering immediate crisis intervention, but also continuing with care, support and counselling for as long as necessary. This lack of continuity has been recognised as one of the weaknesses of existing care systems within the emergency services. Pastors also frequently cease supporting and counselling those traumatized and bereaved, within a month after the event.
  7. Crisis Support Services has a close working relationship with a number of other agencies (viz. Christian Counselling Centres; Netcare; Er24; State Mortuaries; SAPS; Mountain Rescue, etc.). These agencies are usually the first to respond to incidents and then refer the incidents to us. It has been found that it is necessary to utilise these agencies as the church is frequently notified of incidents days after they have taken place and the window of opportunity for being of immediate assistance is then lost.
  8. Crisis Support Services is in a privileged place to within the “inner circle” of paramedics, fire personnel and SAPS members to be trusted enough to offer counselling to these emergency services personal who are prone to suffer from secondary traumatisation and compassion fatigue.
  9. Crisis Support Services has a good working relationship with those that are normally at traumatic events (viz. SAPS; paramedics; Metro police; etc.) as well as staff at hospitals; state mortuaries; funeral directors; etc.
  10. Crisis Support Services is able to help with organ donation should the family wish for this to take place.
  11. Crisis Support Services also aids the church by means of running workshops and talks on trauma. These talks assist congregants to understand the effects of trauma and to be proactive in preventing a traumatic event as much as possible.  They also train congregants to assist traumatised individuals.
  12. Crisis Support Services addresses the fundamentals of the Christian Faith in order to address the problem of “Faith Crisis”.

 

Grief counselling

Crisis Support Services offers:

  1. Counselling regarding death and dying from a Christian perspective.
  2. Counselling for families that have experienced a traumatic or sudden death.
  3. Referral of traumatised/bereaved individuals to support groups within the Christian community.
  4. In the case of a terminal illness, working through the anticipatory grief process with patients and their families and continued counselling subsequent to the actual death.
  5. Liaison with Hospice where appropriate.

 

HIV/AIDS

Crisis Support Services offers:

  1. A strictly confidential service that is physically removed from the church.
  2. A non-judgemental, accepting approach to the crisis situation.
  3. Counselling from a Christian perspective.

 

Counsel for pastors

Crisis Support Services offers:

  1. Training for pastors in the area of trauma.
  2. Confidential support.

 

Workshops

Crisis Support Services offers:

  1. Awareness talks on trauma, grief, etc. to general congregants, women’s groups, men’s fellowships and community outreach, etc.
  2. Specialised training of crisis intervention teams.
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