Extreme Poverty: What are we to do?

Extreme Poverty… choosing which of your children gets to eat today.
What does God expect of us?

Here is a quote pertinent to us as Christians:   It’s not about charity, it’s about justice.   (Bono)

Here’s another: Meanwhile our suffering world waits for signs of God on earth….   God’s plan is that we, the church, are to be the primary evidence of God’s presence.
(Mark Labberton, in The Dangerous Act of Worship)  

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Is Apathy the New Violence?

In Noah’s day, our just God was moved to extreme action because humankind had degenerated into a pervasive, consuming violence (Genesis 6:11-13).  In 21st century America, this would no longer seem to be the case.  The vast majority of America’s citizens enjoy the benefits of what we call civil society,

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Standing in the Gap

What is asked of us, as followers of Christ, concerning the desperately poor?

John the Baptist, preaching about bearing fruit consistent with true repentance (Luke 3), put it in very simple terms when the crowd asked “What, then, should we do?” 

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James 1:27

The New Testament writer James, brother of Jesus, wrote in a plain, no-nonsense style that is as applicable today as it was 2000 years ago.  His provocative emphasis on everyday practice – our actions – is a message that is sometimes unpopular, as it exposes the difference between what we think or believe, and what we do.  Chapter 1, verse 27 -- which bears on the question of helping those who suffer in extreme poverty -- is a good example; let’s take a look.

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Let My Heart Be…

Tucked away under the Advocacy tab on this site is a hidden gem -- a marvelous little video (youtube, 7:12) created and produced by the folks at the Life Center church in Spokane, Washington.  This video, our very favorite, is a beautiful, eloquent, and inspiring piece of music/prose that captures the essence of Richard Stearns' award-winning book,
The Hole in Our Gospel.

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Leviticus 19:9-10

Leviticus 19:9-10Throughout Scripture, we learn that God has a special heart for the poor, the vulnerable, the oppressed... a concern that He expects His people to share.  In Leviticus, God instructs them on how they can act on this concern:  a wonderfully clear, simple prescription for how His people can show intentional, compassionate generosity towards the desperately poor.

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A Hole in Our Gospel

Timothy 4:3 – For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. That is, a gospel with a hole in it – Continue reading

Overview: The Biblical Mandate

This archive category will contain discussions focusing on the the biblical mandate for serving the least and last.  Throughout all 66 books of the bible, in over 2000 separate verses, our Father reveals His heart for the poor.  Ponder the fact that Christ entered this world as one of them, a manger His first bed. So complete is His identification with the poor, His compassion for them, that He considers love shown to the poor to be love shown to Him.  More than a set of rules to be obeyed, we are shown that in helping the least and last we are in communion with Him.Continue reading

Book Review: The Hole in Our Gospel

The Hole in Our Gospel, by Richard Stearns, President Emeritus, World Vision US

Winner, ECPA 2010 Book of the Year

The Hole in Our Gospel, by Richard StearnsWhy is this book so important?
Why have church leaders around the country chosen this book for sermon series', for small group work, for whole-congregation book studies?
Why have so many readers -- individuals and churches -- called it transforming?

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