good-works-community-143401

Using AI for Evangelism and Discipleship | The Apologist Project

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 19:38:51 GMT

AI for Evangelism: Bringing People Closer to Jesus

How The Apologist Project uses AI in Christian ministry to help seekers explore faith and connect with real discipleship relationships.

Jake Carlson founded The Apologist Project by combining two lifelong passions: Christian apologetics and technology. Today, he's using AI for evangelism to help ministries reach people exploring Christianity and connect them with meaningful discipleship relationships.

Raised as a missionary kid in China, Jake returned to the States in 2001 to begin a career in tech. Before starting his first job, he purchased the domain apologist.com and made a promise to God that he would one day build a digital platform for the Kingdom.

He spent 25 years working as a software engineer for startups and companies like Oracle and Apple. When ChatGPT became widely available, Jake saw an opportunity to use AI as a tool to further the Gospel.

How Can AI Support Evangelism?

Jake now serves as executive director of The Apologist Project, a digital platform that partners with ministries and mission organizations to create custom AI chatbots for evangelism and discipleship.

Unlike general-purpose AI tools, these chatbots are designed to help people explore Christianity and the Bible. Their responses draw from a carefully curated knowledge base of trusted Christian ministries and apologetics organizations, grounding conversations in vetted Christian content.

As AI continues to generate both excitement and skepticism, Jake has researched how Christians have historically responded to new technology. His white paper explores how innovations have shaped the spread of the Gospel, including the introduction of the printing press.

When the printing press emerged, many in Christendom worried about job loss, environmental impact, and whether the technology would undermine traditional religious authority. Yet it ultimately made sharing knowledge more accessible and helped spread God's Word.

Jake sees a lesson for Christians considering AI in ministry today:

“God's used every technology that's been invented for His glory, and it's really up to us to be the salt and light that shapes it for His purposes.” — Jake Carlson

How Does AI Connect Seekers With Real Discipleship?

For Jake, technology is a tool, not the destination. One of The Apologist Project's core commitments is helping people move from online conversations to relationships with other believers.

As people interact with a chatbot, the platform can identify those who are genuinely seeking answers and connect them with missionaries or trained volunteers who can continue the conversation. This approach is especially valuable for ministries with limited staff or volunteer capacity.

One ministry partner, Apologetics Canada, shared a story about website security auditors who began experimenting with its chatbot. According to the organization's executive director, one of them ultimately gave his life to Christ.

Jake emphasizes that these tools are intended to support—not replace—human connection.

“The goal is not to endlessly chat with a chatbot. The goal is to get seekers into a discipleship relationship with another human being.” — Jake Carlson

How Can Christian Ministries Grow Through Community?

Although Jake and his team bring extensive technology and startup experience, running a nonprofit ministry has been a new learning experience. Through Good Works Community's Transformational Giving workshops and events , they've gained valuable insight into fundraising, nonprofit leadership, and building relationships with other ministry leaders.

This fall, The Apologist Project is preparing for a major fundraising effort to bring more team members on full-time and expand its impact around the world.

For Jake, the vision has remained the same since he purchased apologist.com more than two decades ago:

“We partner with mission organizations to bring others closer to Jesus through technology.” — Jake Carlson

Addressing Food Insecurity in Austin | Hungry Souls

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 19:24:10 GMT

Food Insecurity in Austin: Powered by Partnerships

What happens when schools, churches, businesses, and volunteers unite to fight food insecurity among children?

Food insecurity in Austin affects families who may struggle to provide consistent meals for their children, especially when school is out. No one knows there’s a need until someone raises their hand and says, “I need help.” That’s true of families experiencing food insecurity, and it’s just as true of the organizations that support them.

Hungry Souls is a faith-based nonprofit in Austin that partners with local schools to identify children and families facing food insecurity and provide meals during the times they’re most vulnerable: weekends and school breaks.

For less than $30 a week, a family receives groceries for a full weekend meal plan—plus a crockpot gifted at enrollment and a scripture tucked into every bag.

The goal: kids thriving in school and in life, breaking generational cycles of scarcity and poverty.

“Raising my two grandkids on a fixed income has been hard, but the weekly meals from Hungry Souls have been a lifesaver. We look forward to them every week, and I’m so grateful for this support.”

— Crockett HS Guardian

How Community Partnerships Help Fight Child Food Insecurity

What makes Hungry Souls so effective is its network of community partnerships. School liaisons on Title I campuses identify families most in need. Support from local grocers like HEB and Walmart provides bulk pricing—Walmart even covers Hungry Souls’ rent. And every week, volunteers show up to pack meals, deliver groceries, and offer encouragement, forming what Hungry Souls calls a “family of support.”

With just two staff members, student interns, and an army of volunteers, the organization serves 652 families each week. Their model is both strategic and deeply relational, and it continues to expand. Currently, they are establishing a church partnership program that invites congregants to help families by loading groceries into their cars at school pickup locations.

How Hungry Souls Is Meeting the Need for Weekend Food Assistance

From the beginning, Hungry Souls has operated on a conviction the founder instilled: God controls the gas pedal.

That unhurried faithfulness has shaped everything—giving them time to build systems, deepen volunteer relationships, and grow without outpacing their capacity. When nearly 200 new families joined in a single year, the infrastructure was already in place to support the growth.

Hungry Souls has also found strength in Good Works Community. Through Good Works Community's training , they gained clarity around board engagement and fundraising, resulting in a huge uptick in giving.

“Good Works has been a tremendous gift for our organization. From resources and trainings to great networking opportunities, being connected to Good Works has really helped Hungry Souls build upon our organization's growth momentum. The training sessions have been a great way for us to leverage our strengths and build community connections we otherwise would not have!”

— Claire Hutson, Hungry Souls Staff

There is a quiet courage in admitting a need. But when you share that need, something powerful happens. People step up. Partnerships form. And what once felt overwhelming becomes something carried together.

Because no one is meant to do this work alone.

Providing Hope through Christian Prison Ministry | The God of Hope

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 18:54:56 GMT

Christian Prison Ministry: Hope Beyond Prison Walls

In prisons across Central Texas, one Christian prison ministry is proving that faithful, focused discipleship can transform lives from the inside out.

“God scooped me up and brought me here,” says Micaela, who had been incarcerated for over three years. She’s one of many women whose lives are being changed by The God of Hope Ministries (GOH).

How Does Christian Prison Ministry Transform Lives?

The God of Hope Ministries exists to help incarcerated men and women find hope and freedom through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And it all happens through one thing: weekly, intensive prison discipleship inside the prisons.

That focus is intentional. After completing the Good Works Community Mission Advancement Academy , Lydia Hill, Executive Administrative Assistant, anchored her work around one idea: do the one thing you do best. For GOH, that clarity became essential when change hit.

Due to changes within the prison system, GOH had to change its programming from a six-month to a year-long curriculum. Women were immediately moved out of the dorm. Incoming participants were reassigned to new leaders. The change created some confusion, but the leadership team believed God had been leading them toward a longer-term discipleship program all along.

The Impact of Prison Discipleship on Incarcerated Women

The fruit is already showing. GOH graduates are now carrying what they learned into other dorms across the prison.

Micaela’s story captures it well:

“After being in prison for over three years, I had always heard about the Lockhart unit, the princess unit, as everyone calls it. Every inmate I knew wanted to be here. One day, God scooped me up and brought me here. Thank you, Jesus…

Since being here, I've learned so much about what it means to have a real relationship with God. People always say God will meet you exactly where you are, and it's true. God met me right where I was in the middle of my mess.

I've never been somewhere where people genuinely care and [GOH volunteers] show us how to love in a godly way. Volunteers come in, pour into us, and love us in our brokenness. They are truly a light in a dark time.”

Staying Faithful to the Mission Through Change

We can’t control every change. But as Lydia’s experience in Good Works Community’s Mission Advancement Academy reinforced, Christian nonprofit leadership means remaining faithful to the one thing God has called you to do.