Over a year on from the vicious conflict between Russia and Georgia, it is easy to forget that there are thousands of people internally displaced on both sides of the front line. In fact, so great is the pressure on the Georgian side that many churches have diverted funding for next-generation and youth ministries, just to cope with the current crisis.

‘Churches Connected For Global Mission’ is one of our straplines in Radstock, so central it is to who we are and what we are about.

The exercise of compassion, moreover, is part and parcel of the task of doing mission, and the reason for this is that it reflects the character of God. Remove the biblical basis for compassion ministries from the Bible and you don’t have much Bible left. And in our world, churches are often at the forefront of providing food and shelter for the hungry and displaced, among many other material needs. Churches are there. 

While in the UK, I was able to meet up again with Malkhaz Songulashvili, who is president of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia, to discuss how churches in other places might connect with churches on the ground in Georgia over the longer term. For prayer info click here. Meanwhile, to find out how your church can get connected, please contact me.