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Posts by Justin Lonas

Living As People of the Resurrection

The work of fighting poverty is a long and difficult road. For every joy and story of transformation, we can all think of sorrows and stories of loss and failure. Walking alongside people through the brokenness of the world is often a one-step-forward-three-steps-back process. It is easy for ministry practitioners and volunteers to grow weary and ministry participants to grow discouraged. Real hope for people and systems in a fallen world seems elusive, and anxiety is poor fuel for sustainable ministry.

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How to Best Help COVID Orphans

How to Best Help COVID Orphans

One million children worldwide have lost a primary or secondary caregiver during the COVID-19 pandemic. What can Christians do?

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Grace Chapel

Refocusing Ministry Through Innovation

When we’re walking with people in poverty, we sometimes want a recipe to follow. But real-life complexities often demand a more innovative approach. Hear how one local church has started shifting from meeting material needs to building relationships with people.

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Church and City Partnerships Restore Dignity through Work

Church and City Partnerships Restore Dignity through Work

If work is foundational to human dignity and ought to be part of our poverty alleviation efforts, what does it look like in “real life” for churches to practice a commitment to work as part of their ministry life?

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The Incarnation and Poverty Alleviation

The Incarnation and Poverty Alleviation

Poverty is complex and multi-faceted. Individual sin, systemic oppression, and even demonic forces can all contribute to poverty. Indeed, the problems are so large that only God can solve them, not a distant God but an incarnate God. The only solution to poverty once lay in a manger.

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Partnerships Re-Purpose Space and Re-Ignite Hope

Partnerships Re-Purpose Space and Re-Ignite Hope

How a long process of transformation brought churches, nonprofits, and even government services together to show the love of Christ in a community.

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People listening to a speaker

Disconnected Times Don’t Have to Stop Relational Ministry

How do you do face-to-face ministry when gathering people together could be a threat to their health? During this season, churches and ministries are getting creative with solutions that allow them to continue serving well.

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Minister looking out of a window

The Local Church in a Pandemic World

When we’re faced with a pandemic or a global economic crisis, we look for solutions that are as big as the problem. As part of the global body of Christ, your local church is part of the biggest solution to the world’s biggest problems!

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Riding Out the Storm Together

Riding Out the Storm Together

The church is uniquely positioned to survive and even thrive under these conditions. But doing so will require love, compassion, and obedience.

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Hosting a potluck

Your Church is a Family

Your local church can do something for the materially poor that no other organization can do: be a family. What does a loving family look like?

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Wendell Kimbrough

A Gymnasium for Our Hearts: Singing to Shape Our Love for the Poor

The gathered worship and liturgy of the church is key to our formation as the people of God, but too often, an element is missing. Musician Wendell Kimbrough shares how our worship services can reinforce our understanding of God’s heart for people suffering poverty and injustice.

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