HEALTHY CHURCHES IN HARD PLACES: Church Planting among Urban Poor
STATEMENT
Over a billion people live in extreme poverty, deprived of basic resources, and often living lives that are exceedingly difficult, marked by high rates of crime, widespread addiction, physical and mental health challenges, abuse, and neglect. Well-intentioned Christians tend to focus relief efforts primarily on the physical and temporal needs of those in poverty, addressing only the symptoms. However, the end goal of missions is not to alleviate poverty but to reconcile mankind to God. Only the gospel holds the power to transform lives eternally. A healthy church clarifies the gospel, engages in long-term discipleship, contributes wisely to the relief of the poor, and offers enduring hope amid earthly trials. Healthy churches that proclaim, display, and live out the gospel in the hardest places are a witness to the power of God to transform communities and provide true and lasting joy.
Article Written by Daniel DavisonThe Great Commission calls us to go and make disciples of all nations, a comprehensive call to bring the Gospel to the places where it’s unknown. The truth is, most of the world’s unreached people live in some of the most challenging areas—not just hard to reach, but hard to live in. Today, over 1.3 billion people live in extreme poverty, many earning less than $2.50 a day. The 10/40 window is filled with lives marked by hardship.
So, what is poverty? At first glance, the answer seems simple. In areas of extreme poverty, life expectancy is low, time is short, crime and addiction are rampant, and mental health issues, abuse, and neglect are common. Even in the wealthiest cities, you’ll find communities trapped in cycles of deep poverty, not just financially but emotionally, ensnared by shame and fear. From rural villages in Tajikistan to Pakistani refugees in Bangkok to sprawling Indian slums, these are the hard places.
I live with my family in one of the largest cities in the world, a sprawling Asian metropolis where sleek skyscrapers overlook crumbling slums. The wealthy live in luxury, guarded by underpaid security guards and cleaned by those who travel hours each day on overcrowded buses from and back to their overcrowded homes. Just a few hours outside our city, you will come across rural villages, where basic services like healthcare and reliable electricity are often out of reach. The city lures people from these villages to jobs that frequently feed on their desperation.
When fulfilling the Great Commission, these hard places must not be forgotten, and these people cannot be overlooked. Obeying the Great Commission includes going to the hardest places.
Poverty isn’t just about a lack of money, housing, or services. It’s deeper than that. My brother and I grew up on a poor housing estate in southeast England in the 1980s. My mother was a single parent, and we lived with my grandparents in their small four-room home. We had warmth from the coal fire and food on the table, but poverty, for us, was more about alienation and shame. No matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t get ahead. The hardest part wasn’t the lack of things; it was watching friends fall into addiction, witnessing loved ones be buried, and seeing my mother hide her tears. At nine years old, I felt lost, lonely, and afraid.
Jesus came to seek and save the lost, with special care for the downtrodden. So, how should missionaries engage the poor? Jesus gave us a clear mandate: go and make disciples. This must be our response to poverty because it’s the answer to every social challenge we face. The apostle Paul was eager to remember the poor (Gal 2:10), but his fundamental calling was not temporal wealth redistribution. Instead, through the gospel, he offered life to those who were perishing. We, too, must shine a light on the spiritual poverty of those trapped in a cycle of despair and lead them to the only one who can offer hope.
As I grew up, our poverty didn’t go away overnight. Life was still hard. But hope came, not in the form of charity, but through a minister who shared the gospel with my mother. Her mourning turned to joy when she gave her life to Christ. From that moment, our material poverty didn’t vanish, but the trajectory of my entire family changed completely.
Historically, churches and missionaries have often started mercy ministries—food banks, rice distribution, and medical clinics. But too frequently, these efforts don’t lead to transformed lives or new disciples. Sometimes, they even deepen the sense of shame among those suffering. Meanwhile, churches in poor communities struggle with isolation, a lack of resources, and discouragement.
The truth is the greatest need of the poor is a healthy, gospel-centered church. Jesus didn’t leave the poor with a trust fund; He left them the church. Yet, a healthy church is hard to find in many poor communities. You’ll see people struggling to survive, children playing barefoot, and streets littered with needles and empty bottles. NGOs might be there to help, but often, the one thing you won’t find is a thriving, gospel-centered church. And the existing churches often preach a prosperity gospel that offers no lasting hope.
The deepest need of every person—rich or poor—is spiritual, not physical. Yes, the church should feed the hungry and help addicts, but if that overwhelms eternal objectives, we’re missing the point. Jesus called us to go and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey all that he commanded. When poverty relief crowds out gospel proclamation, true mercy is not being offered. To truly show mercy, we must make Jesus known and plant and establish churches centered on Christ and the true Gospel.
Planting churches in poor communities is essential but extremely difficult. These churches often face the same lack of resources as the communities they serve. They frequently don’t have trained leaders, and the work is demanding. Many of these communities can’t support the ministry on their own, so other churches need to step in and help. One of the best ways to support churches in hard places is through identifying and investing in “reliable men” from these communities. Those from the hard places are often best able to reach those living in the hard places. The role of the missionary is, as always, one of evangelism and discipleship. Biblical missions aims to produce obedience to Jesus’ commands and growth in the knowledge of God’s Word, all with a view toward making disciples. Potential leaders will need support to be equipped for ministry without removing leaders from their communities or communicating that the goal is to escape the hard places.
Networks like the Church in Hard Places exist to do just that. Church in Hard Places is a network of churches committed to resourcing missionaries and pastors working in the hardest places. Gabe, from Liberia, is one pastor who such a network has helped. During the 1989 civil war, he fled to a refugee camp, where he found Christ and began showing evidence of ministry gifts. He started a small group that became a church. But, like many, Gabe was vulnerable to the prosperity gospel and other false teachings. Seeking help, he joined a ministry apprenticeship program, where he learned the true gospel and led his church away from false teaching. Gabe was trained well for ministry while remaining in his community. Today, he preaches a message of lasting hope to those scarred by war and poverty. He is now a church pastor that knows true mercy and extends it to others.
Gabe sought help, but many others don’t even know they need it. As missionaries, we must be like Jesus, running toward the lost and suffering. We can’t wait for pastors in hard places to come to us. Missions-minded Christians must go to them, see how God is working, and partner with them to extend Christ’s hope. Those trapped in poverty will often ask for material help, but if all we offer them is our pity and our money, we leave them impoverished. What the world’s poor need is what every sinner needs—to see Jesus. They need churches that preach the gospel and display the gospel. They need communities of faith that are covenanted to each other and committed to each other’s pursuit of holiness and wholeness. Churches provide safety for the hurting and a place of healing for the wounded.
Only the gospel holds the power to transform lives eternally. A healthy church clarifies the gospel, engages in long-term discipleship, contributes wisely to the relief of the poor, and offers enduring hope amid earthly trials. Healthy churches that proclaim, display, and live out the gospel in the hardest places are a witness to the power of God to transform communities and provide true and lasting joy.
