More than 50 people reaching tough housing estates across Britain attended the Church in Hard Places (CiHP) conference in May hosted by New Life Church, Middlesbrough.
What does being church in a ‘hard place’ look like? The conference outlined that it is not about methods, but there are important strategies that we can identify.
Fundamental to everything is the need to understand the gospel. Andy Prime explained the need to prioritise the needs of the patient (triage) before problems are tackled. The challenge in areas of deprivation is often due to a focus on tackling problems, when the fundamental issue is sin in people’s lives. Unless the gospel is articulated in its fullness it does not have the power to cure.
