When I first heard of a job opportunity at Providence, called “Soul Care”, my brother-in-law laughed out loud and said, “that sounds like an 80’s hair band, not a job at a church!” Well, he’s not totally wrong….Even I was confused for a time though, of why Soul Care was different from a good ol’ regular Care ministries. And bottom line: it’s the heart.
The focus of Soul Care is best described in our mission statement: “Transforming lives by the Word of God, in the Spirit of God, and through the Community of God, we seek for the Soul Care you will receive to be Christ-centered, biblically-based with truth and grace, Spirit-led, prayer-saturated and community-oriented. We desire to help you meet the challenges of life in a way that will please and honor the Lord Jesus Christ and allow you to fully enjoy His love for you and His plans for your life.”
In short, the real care we want to provide is for your heart, so you can know Christ better and understand His love for you, in order that you can live a life that glorifies Him while loving others and enjoying life alongside one another! We have all been in a position before where we knew we didn’t just need a Bible study, or a new hobby, or a way to serve others to feel closer to Christ. Our soul has felt weary and needed care, intention, guidance, wisdom, and comfort. More than just a, ‘Hey, how are you? How’s work going?” conversation at the coffee bar, we were created for true, authentic relationships with depth and compassion for and from one another. And what better place than the body of Christ alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ?
Life is loud. Pressures stack up quietly. Hurts get buried beneath busy calendars. Even joys—good, God-given joys—can become overwhelming to navigate alone.
Soul Care is the ministry of coming alongside one another in those deep places, not with quick fixes or self-help slogans, but with the hope, truth, and presence of the person and work of Christ.
It’s an invitation to slow down.
To be known.
To be anchored in the gospel when everything else feels shaky.
Soul Care isn’t therapy. It isn’t crisis management. It’s not a program designed to replace professional help. Rather, it’s the church being the church in Christ—walking with one another toward spiritual and emotional health; grounded in Scripture, shaped by grace, and formed in Christ.
At Providence, our corporate gatherings and community groups are where everyday discipleship and everyday care naturally grow. Soul Care is built on that foundation—not replacing community groups but supporting them.
Most care happens in circles, not rows; over dinner tables, not desks; face-to-face, in conversations where people feel seen, not lost in the crowd.
Soul Care strengthens that environment by equipping people—leaders and members alike—to love one another well. And when someone needs help beyond the normal rhythms of group life, Soul Care steps in as a guide, a companion, and a bridge.
We’re not asking community group leaders to be counselors. We’re asking them to be present. Soul Care comes alongside to help with what’s beyond their role or capacity.
Since 2019, our Care Pastor, Tim Harkins, has been building pathways of equipping our people to do just this. That’s why we offer yearly trainings for our community group leaders, a lay counselor training program, premarital discipleship, and Freedom Groups. If you haven’t heard of Freedom Groups, it is for people who are walking through a season of sin struggles, suffering or apathy, and wanting to grow in their love for Christ. We take theology and apply it to the heart in order to better understand our Savior, ourselves and others.
As Paul communicates to the Corinthians, ‘“…the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Cor. 1:3-5).
We want to be a body of believers that exudes this revelation, “… that while we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ- by grace you have been saved” (Eph. 2:5), so that anyone who comes through our doors will know that we are just as undeserving of the love of Christ as they are, yet we have received His grace and comfort so that we can love and serve one another.
That, my friends, is Soul Care.
Learn More:
- Find out more by visiting our Soul Care page at www.providencefrisco.com/resources/care.
- Every week, our staff gathers to pray over the church, our members, and the community. If you need prayer you can submit your prayer request here.
- We provide biblical counseling for individuals and couples facilitated through volunteer practitioners who are trained to help you get to the heart issues behind your area of struggle. If necessary, we can also provide referrals for clinical help. If you’d like to find out more about biblical counseling you can click this link to submit a request.
- Learn more about Freedom Groups and how you can join one here!
