Should I Give?

The following is a quote from Robert Lupton of FCS Urban Ministries:

 Continual heart-responses yield diminishing returns: 

feed a person once and it elicits appreciation (oh, thank you so much);

feed him twice and it creates anticipation (wonder if he’s going to do it again);

feed him three times and it creates expectation (when is he going to do it);

 feed him four times and it becomes an entitlement (I need it now);

feed him five times and it produces dependency (you can’t stop, I’m counting on it).

Given the above, is it right to simply give a hand-out to someone in need? If so, when might it be appropriate? Surely sometimes -maybe most times- it is devastating. Learn more by contacting the Hope office.

Walking Around

I used to run through my neighborhood. Since I ran six days a week, I felt fairly confident that I knew my community quite well. I knew which street connected to which street, which ones were dead ends, and which led me to busy intersections I did not wish to cross. I knew where the dogs lived -those who were chained and those who were not. And after four years of running the same old routes, I grew tired of it. I knew it too well.

Or so I thought. After two years of running, something happened in my life that forced me to walk. I had to slow down. And when I slowed down, a different picture came into view. Homes looked more weathered than I remembered. Certain corners carried more trash than I had seen before. I made eye contact with neighbors. I talked with long-time residents and listened to front porch conversations as I passed by. The same dogs that had loved to bark and chase me were now the dogs that followed me from street to street as I made my daily rounds. I began to see that the place I called home was not the place I thought I knew at all. It had a lot more to say now that I was listening.

Take time to walk through your neighborhood. Get to know your neighbors, local business owners, and leaders. Pray the the Lord would open your heart to the lonely and hurting around you and open your eyes to see those who have been right there all along.

Proud to be Here.

Read this article and discover some exciting new reasons to be a proud southerner (or like me, a proud transplant to the South).

How can we take advantage of these new opportunities?

http://www.gadling.com/2012/09/04/the-southern-road-traveling-through-the-new-industrial-america/

This is a Problem. Or is it?

What do you think? Read the following article for the Non-profit Quarterly. Contact us and let us know what you think at heather.hope4nwga@gmail.com.


A Job Not Done: Rural Areas Socked By Unproductive Congress

Understanding Poverty: For Educators

I just finished reading a book and must make a recommendation for anyone who is an educator! If you work with children living in poverty, this is a must read. Written by Ruby K. Payne, A Framework for Understanding Poverty delves into the hidden rules of the three economic classes and introduces the reader to some exciting strategies for overcoming the obstacles facing those in poverty.

If you are not an educator, or are simply excited about Payne's ideas, check out her website at AHA Process.

Justice to Charity

In Lawrence Mead's From Prophesy to Charity: How to Help the Poor, he argues that we must move on from Justice, and take a step towards Charity.

"The Good Samaritan rescues the man beaten by robbers not because his community expected this -indeed, it did not- but because of his personal compassion toward the victim."

Mead then goes on to apply this to today's society. He argues that, in order to be charitable, the poor need not have some kind of value applied to them by society.

"The poor need not have standing in their community. They need not be 'deserving.' Indeed, the Bible virtually defines them as the undeserving. We need not claim that they have been wronged [as Justice would seek to do]. We need not identify with them, claiming that they are citizens just like the more privileged. We need not deny obvious differences between the poor and nonpoor. Rather, in the sight of God everyone is unworthy, poor and nonpoor alike."

 When one takes this approach, it becomes impossible to ignore one glaring fact: we are all poor. If this is true, how might we then apply charity to our fellow impoverished brothers and sisters?

Thank You!

Many thanks to those who joined Hope at Chattanooga Valley Presbyterian Church this past Saturday for a training on Mercy & Justice in the church. We had a wonderful time! I was truly blessed by the discussions we had, and hope to continue this journey of learning and repentance with you! Living a life that truly shares itself with the poor is no easy task.