What is Soul Care?
The Church is designed to be a caring community of Believers. Each member of the Body of Christ has been a recipient of the outrageous and extravagant grace of God. While many local churches have done an outstanding job caring for the physical and spiritual needs of their congregations, for many, care for the soul has not been a primary focus. While all believers are redeemed, forgiven, justified, etc., we are still broken people, living in a broken world. We have all been impacted in one way or another by evil and the consequences of sin.
For every Believer, there is a path of sanctification, by which the Spirit of God, through the word of God, transforms us little by little. For decades, local churches have referred soul issues like anxiety, depression, addiction, and so on to professionals. Church leaders across the country are now realizing that secular psychology does not address the core issues of the human soul. We all struggle with heart idols, false beliefs, and destructive patterns, all of which are addressed in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel is sufficient for soul care, and the Church should be a place where individuals can find real, practical, biblical care that can assist them as they heal and grow in their relationship with the Lord. The gospel addresses matters of the soul and the church is designed to care for itself.Â
Why Start a Soul Care Ministry in Your Church?
The Church is designed to be a Community of Care
 Soul Care is not a new concept. The Apostle Paul explained that God has placed specific individuals with specific gifts in the Body of Christ for its building up and care (1 Cor. 12:18-21; Eph. 4:15-16). While everyone is called to the discipleship process of the older helping the younger, some members have gifts of compassion, mercy, and teaching that are extremely well-suited for a soul care team member.
Paul explains, “God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another (1 Cor. 12:24-25 -ESV). “Same care” emphasizes Mutual and reciprocal care. The implication is that all forms of care can be mutually given and received among the members of the Body of Christ. The “One-another” commandments of the New Testament are well known: encourage one another (Heb. 3:13), Comfort one another (1 Thess. 4:18), build up one another (1 Thess. 5:11), teach and admonish one another (Col. 3:16), confess to one another (James 5:16), and bear with one another (Rom. 15:1). The one another aspects of ministry are within the context of soul care.Â
The Old and New Testaments are replete with warnings about the type of counsel we should and should not expose ourselves to (Ps. 1:1-2, Isaiah 31:1, Col. 2:10). While the Church has not been seen as a source of healing and support for those with soul struggles, it should be. A growing number of Christians are realizing that the gospel speaks to the struggles we face in life.Â
The New Testament teaches us to bear one another’s burdens. Paul explains, Â “Brothers, if anyone is caught [overtaken] in any transgression, you who are spiritual [not carnal or fleshly] should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:1-2 -ESV). Paul seems confident that the Galatian believers knew how to restore their brothers! He highlights specific characteristics needed to engage in this restoring ministry: Spiritual, gentle, caring, and self-aware.Â
Writing to the Thessalonians, Paul gives practical direction regarding specific types of individuals who struggle. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all (1 Thess. 5:14 – NKJV). The implication is that individuals struggle in different areas. And, mature Believers need to be trained to know how to administer care in specific ways.
A Soul Care Team should be made up of trained, mature, spiritual individuals who have a heart to care for others in their struggles.Â
We strongly recommend that Soul Care Team members be certified in biblical counseling to be equipped for this important ministry.
The length of time it will take to develop a Soul Care Team in your church will depend on several factors. BCCI can assist in doing a general assessment of your congregation to determine which ministries already align with Soul Care. In general, the process of developing a Soul Care Team will take approximately 2 years (see the Soul Care Team Roadmap).
It is recommended that you have 3-5 individuals in training when you do a soft launch of your Soul Care Ministry.
Soul Care is a core function of the Local church. Your Soul Care Team will not be offering psychological counseling. Soul Care is biblical counseling, offering spiritual guidance and formation. Soul Care members do not function as professional counselors. As you develop your Soul Care ministry, BCCI will assist you with the necessary documentation to protect you and your church from liability issues. NOTE: We do not give legal advice.
If you are interested iin developing a Soul Care Ministry in your church, please contact our office at 210-636-1776 or email us at info@RIMinistries.org. We can schedule an information call so we can give you the information you need to pray, plan, and begin taking steps in that direction.
