Brian Fikkert
When we try to help people, we often start by trying to identify what’s wrong with the low-income individual or community, and then we try to bring in outside resources to fix what’s wrong. What if we started with what’s right with the people and communities we serve?
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Many of the certainties of our daily lives have been upended. We all just want to get back to normal! But what is “normal”? What are we eager to get back to?
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The best approach to helping someone depends on the situation. In a time of crisis, we should definitely err on the side of generosity. What does this generosity look like during a global pandemic?
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It’s Easter weekend—the pinnacle of the Christian calendar. It’s supposed to be a weekend full of joy and celebration. How are we to experience joy and celebrate in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis?
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People in a middle-class community often see the materially poor as people we need to “fix.” But what if everyone is affected by the same underlying brokenness that contributes to material poverty?
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Why bother with churches? Because the Bible teaches us that the church is guaranteed to pay huge dividends forever!
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When we see material poverty in the world around us, our first instinct is to do something about it. Where should we start? What’s the first step in poverty alleviation?
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Is poverty due to individual brokenness? Or is it caused by systemic injustice? The Bible teaches that the Fall really happened—and it affects both individuals and systems!
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How do we build ministries that address the five root causes of poverty? Here’s an introduction to some key principles that you can apply where you are.
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There are five big things that create material poverty and keep people trapped in it. Learn the five causes of poverty—and how you can begin to address them.
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God is working out His reconciling story in this broken world. The Bible doesn’t provide us with a detailed script for this story—but it does give us the overall direction of God’s unfolding plan. What does this mean for our efforts to help people who are poor?
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Your local church is a place where God dwells with His people in a special way. Is your church welcoming people who are poor back into the dwelling place of God?
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When we try to help people in poverty, we incorporate faulty ideas into our efforts without even realizing it. What are these false stories—and why do they matter?
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Every human is worshiping something—and what we worship shapes our entire lives, including our work with people in poverty. When people encounter our poverty alleviation efforts, what will they find us worshiping?
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We often build poverty alleviation initiatives that are designed to help poor people pursue the American Dream. But what if all of us—poor and non-poor alike—need a different story?
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The way that we work with people who are poor reflects the stories we tell ourselves about what it means to live the “good life.” If we get the story wrong, our efforts to help the poor can do more harm than good.
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