Community Development and Transformation

Community Health Evangelism (abbreviated CHE; pronounced chay; in some countries, depending on the context the program, is referred to as Community Health Education or Community Development Education) is a multifaceted approach to Christian ministry that addresses the needs of the whole person—physical, spiritual, emotional, and social. It is a strategic way to facilitate holistic transformational development or integral mission.

The purpose of CHE work is not just breaking poverty or planting churches, though both of those things are accomplished. The real goal of our work is a transformation in lives and communities that is as deep as the human heart and as broad as the whole range of the human experience in the world God made. We want Jesus to be recognized as Lord over all creation and our development activities to reflect the depth and breadth of the kingdom of God. We are asking God to work in us and through us to transform beliefs and change behavior so that His peace, justice, compassion, and righteousness are reflected in the life of the communities we serve.

We will go to any location that requests our help, although first we would make sure there isn’t someone more local to do it in the first place. Our sister organization MAI (Medical Ambassadors International) is in many more countries than we are, and many of our regional coordinators work with MAI as well.

We believe that development work should be community owned. We promote this core principle by training workers in a very specific development philosophy known as Community Health Evangelism (CHE) which focuses on transforming lives both physically and spiritually.