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Posts in “U.S. Ministry”
For the Kingdom: The Impact of Influence
Across the globe, churches and ministries are stepping into hard places—walking with families facing poverty, isolation, and loss of dignity. The Chalmers Center exists to equip God’s people to respond in a way that’s rooted in biblical truth and practical love. By God’s grace, from local churches and ministries to global NGOs, Chalmers has helped shape a movement of Christian economic development that restores relationships and fosters lasting change. This is the story of that influence.
Opening Doors to Hope: Tonka’s Story and the Power of Work Life
In a world where “getting a job” is both vital to survival and difficult to achieve, job readiness programs often feel transactional. This is exactly where Chalmers’ Work Life program stands apart. It weaves faith, character, and community into every lesson–offering more than just skills but also hope.
Benevolence As a Posture, Not Just a Ministry
When Chalmers published When Helping Hurts in 2009, our team had already been thinking about, teaching, and practicing a theology of poverty and poverty alleviation for a long time.
Financial Literacy: More than Just the Facts
April is recognized as National Financial Literacy Month. Here’s a question to ponder: why don’t more Americans make better decisions in managing their finances? Is it simply that they need better information?
Exchange Models Done Well: Eight Ways to Empower Without Exploiting
or most able-bodied adults, paid employment is essential to the long-term path out of poverty. To effect that outcome, many churches and ministry organizations use a partial-exchange, intermediate-steps model that teaches the skills necessary to succeed in the marketplace.
The Exponential Power of Partnership
During the past 25 years, in addition to publishing books about poverty alleviation, Chalmers has been creating training for use in both the U.S. and the Majority World (of Africa, Asia, and Latin America). These field-tested programs are built on God’s story of change and community development best practices to help you put a biblical framework for addressing poverty into practice.
Training to Help Your Ministry Help without Hurting
During the past 25 years, in addition to publishing books about poverty alleviation, Chalmers has been creating training for use in both the U.S. and the Majority World (of Africa, Asia, and Latin America). These field-tested programs are built on God’s story of change and community development best practices to help you put a biblical framework for addressing poverty into practice.
Hope Exchange in Jackson, Mississippi: From Crisis Relief to Long-Term Development
Levi and Kateri Gill met while serving with a jobs training program that created employment opportunities through a wood shop and a local coffee shop. This work not only set the course of their personal lives, it also deepened their commitment to serving their community.
Making Work Work: Why Most Advice about Work Doesn’t Work in Economically Challenged Communities
Helping people experience the dignity of sustaining work can be an effective way to address material poverty in a long-term, holistic way.
Tools to Serve Well: Chalmers Ambassadors Share How the Training Has Blessed Their Ministry Work
A little over two years ago, Chalmers started an Ambassador program. Through this two-month-long intensive training, ministry practitioners from all over North America have been certified to represent Chalmers in their region or ministry field. This has allowed Chalmers to send out Ambassadors to provide presentations of a biblical framework for poverty alleviation and help churches and organizations implement healthy, sustainable ministry initiatives.
Why Work Matters
God’s passion for work is a theme found throughout Scripture. One example found in the Old Testament is gleaning laws, which we explored in previous posts (HERE and HERE). In addition, Scripture also has a lot to say about why work matters, why justice for workers matters, and why we should care for those who are vulnerable.
Building Your A-Team: How to Recruit, Equip, and Support a Core Team for Your Work Readiness Ministry
Last week, Shay Bassett, Director of the Work Life program at the Chalmers Center hosted a webinar on Building Your A-Team: How to Recruit, Equip, and Support a Core Team for Your Work Readiness Ministry. She shared about why work matters, the barriers people face to finding and keeping sustaining work, and why we need a new story about work.
Don’t Reinvent the Wheel: Learning From Others in Ministry Design
Over the years, I’ve had conversations with hundreds of ministry leaders who reflect on how, in the early years of their work with the materially poor, they did as much harm as good.
What Does Trauma Have To Do with Financial Health?
How a relational and biblical approach to financial education transforms more than just budgets.
Restored Ministries Restore People: The Story of Medford Gospel Mission
Fourteen years ago, when Jason Bull accepted a position as an Associate Director of Medford Gospel Mission, he realized he needed to learn how to faithfully operate a nonprofit ministry. He remembers, “I didn’t know anything about nonprofit management or working with a board of directors. I had to educate myself!” He began reading various books to sharpen his ability to lead the organization and to faithfully serve the homeless community of Medford, Oregon.
Financial Education with Kingdom Goals
Jerilyn Sanders has been the Director of U.S. Training at the Chalmers Center for over 10 years. Her work combines two things: her love for God’s people and her passion for education that empowers the disenfranchised. In 2011, Sanders was part of the team that created and rolled out Faith & Finances, a financial education curriculum that’s a tool for holistic community ministry. She answered a few questions to share more about her work and the ways Faith & Finances is helping churches and ministries love their low-income neighbors well.
You’re More Than Your Past
As someone previously incarcerated, Chanda knows first-hand how broken relationships are at the core of poverty. It’s why she continues to show up for incarcerated women with biblical truths and practical resources — like Faith & Finances Inside.
Recruiting and Equipping Effective Volunteers
When it comes to poverty alleviation ministry, it’s not uncommon for new volunteers to feel excited about getting involved. They can’t wait to make a difference. But if these volunteers aren’t well-prepared for the work they’re joining, over time, they will likely begin to feel overwhelmed and discouraged. They realize that there are more needs than resources and there is always something else they could do to help. Walking through deep valleys with people wrestling with material poverty, the road is often rough and the way forward isn’t always clear. These sorts of challenges are part of the reason that The Chalmers Center regularly talks about the importance of training volunteers.