Those of you who know me personally or who have been following this blog for some time know that I have read several books. Some time ago, I read a book called “Toxic Charity: How Does the Church Help (and How To Invest) Harm?[Toxic Charity: How the Church Harms Those Who Help (and How to Overthrow It) I will include a brief summary here, although that is not the main theme of this article.
The book has 10 chapters and is written by Robert L. Lupton, the founder of FCS Urban Ministries. Su aims to help Christian churches think more carefully about the kind of help they provide to the poor and oppressed, especially in the second and second part. Third World countries. According to Lupton, “good intentions,” while admirable, are often dangerous and counterproductive to those we seek to help, if we have not seriously thought about the implications beforehand. According to Lupton, instead of fostering dependence, we should look for ways in which our gift and/or help can produce more independence.
- This is a really useful book for those of us who work in areas where that’s a real concern.
- I recommend you buy a copy.
- Meditate slowly and draw your own conclusions.
- Consider the following quotation:.
For the disadvantaged to prosper to their full potential, which God gives them, they must abandon the dependencies that hinder their growth. Initiatives that hinder their development, while properly motivated, must be restructured to strengthen self-sufficiency if they are well motivated. become agents of sustainable and positive change.
At Niddria, we constantly evaluate and reassess all our ministries and evangelization. We have tried (and failed) with several local initiatives to help those in financial difficulty. Currently, we are still in the early stages of developing our “return to “work”, which has seen 3 of our participants take full-time employment over the past two years. We regularly try to think of initiatives that focus on developing a work ethic for our new believers, so that they do not (1) remain inactive and ( 2) Recognize that God saved them for some?(Whether professional or work) While these ideas are good, we face serious obstacles. According to Lupton (talking about microcredits):
Experienced microcredit organizations have identified three essential elements for microcredit success: The borrower must have: (1) a strong work ethic, (2) an obvious business instinct, and (3) a stable support system. , these three elements must be the basis of the borrower or the transaction will not be backed up.
There are still traces of this ethic here in Niddrie, many residents worked hard, sometimes with 2 or 3 jobs to increase their income, unfortunately, the arrival of the welfare state and the huge increase in drug culture (prescribed and others) have left us with a subculture (hardcore) without work ethic, without initiative and without family support network , people have no motivation to work hard because they ultimately know that the state will help them as it has for generations. , are people happy?with your unemployment insurance and subsidizing your income with a little sporadic work (money in hand, you know).
Niddrie is not Africa or any other second or third world nation where many people (apparently) have a more entrepreneurial spirit. Many people in these countries will work hard to do almost anything in order to provide for their families, and they don’t mind working 18 hours a day (there are many who are lazy and lazy too!). Of course, the advantage in many of these countries (and I have personally seen it in Brazil) is that people are not subject to the same government regulations and financial restrictions when it comes to setting up businesses and entrepreneurial activities. But still, ask an average Niddria resident who walks into our cafe what your dream is and they will look at you blankly. As for a stable support network, forget it. Yesterday’s abused child, raised by an alcoholic father and a mother who loves Valium, is now a? Father? (I use this term on purpose, as I see a growing number of “mothers” here with absent fathers). It is tragic. How can we even begin to put some of our ideas of ‘community stimulation’ into practice when individualism and family breakdown are practically the model of our neighborhood for many who need our help and assistance? our support? The answer is obvious, but at first glance it seems to many a commonplace and very simplistic. I’ll say it, despite this.
We must continue to preach the one true and saving gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with greater strength and clarity, praying for a deep and personal spiritual awakening and for renewal in the minds and hearts of our listeners.
He is – he is – he read it again, we must preach to Christ, and he is crucified, we should never present you as an option of self-help, as someone who has come to improve your life or to give you another document. He came to call us all to “give up ourselves and take our cross daily. He calls us all to a life of continuous repentance. I truly believe that only an action of the Holy Spirit of God in a person’s life will motivate him. “to a life of constructive independence. Before this happens, they must be born again. No spiritual renewal is equal to any physical and communal renewal. Now, many of my dearest and most respected friends will argue that the church’s main job is to proclaim the gospel and leave the rest of these things to the state or other outside agencies. I totally agree.
The problem comes from dealing with the new believer who has spent the last 30 years of his life in a drug-induced lethargy, living at the expense of the state and living at home with his girlfriend and 3 children. four other children he has with three other women in the ward. Does this now become our problem? When we tell him what biblical discipleship looks like, how does it encourage him to start making a positive contribution to society rather than being paid all the time?How can we free him from a benefit system that will make him financially better unemployed??
At NCC, we have witnessed that the only way a person can be encouraged to leave the benefits system and enter the workforce is through the power of God’s Holy Spirit. Not only does he save lost souls, he is the great motivator when it comes to changing lives completely. That’s why we’ve seen longtime drug addicts land their first jobs in decades. What about the support network they need but don’t have at home? It is the local church, the local body of believers that encourages, rebukes, corrects, and helps keep motivated. Our love and discipleship doesn’t stop because they entered the workforce. At Niddrie, we seek to propel people toward independence almost from the moment they acquire faith. In the early days, we encourage people to volunteer in the community cafeteria and help with building maintenance, as the first step on the stairs. Those who seek the easy get bored quickly and leave, but those who actually want to move on stay and work hard. Often the next step is to volunteer in the community one day a week. These are small steps, but they are steps in the right direction. It is the only system we currently have to separate the wheat from the chaff. It’s a long-term goal, but we’re starting to see the first signs of results.
At the moment, we have not devised a successful and 100% achievable strategy. I suspect we’re going to be confused, make mistakes, and get out of the way. All suggestions are welcome. I know that while we structure things here, we must: (1) keep the gospel as the main thing, (2) keep the local church at the center of everything we do, (3) see all projects as a means of the continued proclamation of the gospel and/or discipline, (4) ensure that all income generated is reinvested in the community, and (5) programmed to ensure future Aboriginal leadership.
Pray for us as we think about these things. I’ll write more about these topics.
By: Mez McConnell. © 20 diagrams. Website: 20schemes. com. Translated with permission. Source: How can we help those who have won?To help themselves?.
Original: How can we help those who don’t want to help themselves?© Faithful Of the Department. Website: MinistryFiel. com. br. All rights reserved. Translation: Camila Rebeca Teixeira. Review: André Alosio Oliveira da Silva.