POOR Favor.

Well kids, it's that time again. It's liz's weekly blog post! Yay! This week was Ministry to the Poor with Kit Danley. Kit lives in Phoenix, Arizona working with Neighborhood Ministries. Neighborhood Ministries is a project that works in the poorest neighborhoods in Arizona. Needless to say, Kit knows what she's talking about. Kit asked us this question: What if poor communities could talk to us? What would they say and would we listen? Matthew 28:19 says, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." We are to preach the good news. Right? But what is the good news? What does the good news mean to those living in poverty? Is it words or is it more? Could it be food, resources, and a way out of poverty? That is how I picture the good news. So how do we get there? Helping the poor is so much more than hand outs. Hand outs perpetuate the cycle of poverty. Hand outs do not command or communicate the need to get out of poverty. It takes a lifetime to break the cycle of poverty. It takes discipleship. If you provide a job you have to provide job training. You have to teach them how to keep a job. Make sense? Free clothes and free food don't cut it. They are a great door and opportunity to build relationship. Hand outs are square one. But just hand outs aren't enough. You have to do more. Just hand outs don't cut it. Hand outs without discipleship doesn't help anyone. This is the challenge: To do more. To go above and beyond. To meet the physical, social, and spiritual needs of those living in impovershed situations. Making sense? I hope so. Let's talk about the story of the Good Samaritan. When the Good Samaritan helped the afflicted man, how did he do it? Was he out looking to help? Or did it just happen spontaneously? Did it happen because he was trying or because care and kindness just flowed out of his spirit? This is how we should minister to the poor. It should come from the love we have received and the love we had for God. It should be spontaneous and not an effort. Kit also emphasized the importance of asking questions and getting know a community. You cannot plan to help someone without knowing what they need. Seems logical right? But how often do we actually do that? A lot of times misionaries waltz in and start a project without knowing the real needs of the community. And then they wonder why the project fails. So first things first. You gotta ask questions. You have to make relationships and get to know the community you're working in.  By asking the right questions. By talking to the pastors, residents, and leaders of that community. By making an effort. This is ministry to the poor. Go give it a try. I will be in Costa Rica!!!

Quote of the week: "Poverty is a veil that obscures the face of greatness." -Kahlil Gibran

Note on my past week: So last week, I gave an entire kids lesson in Spanish! We went to the Red Light District and put on a kids program. I told the story of Daniel while my friends acted it out. We then taught them to always put their trust in God. We also got to check out a local rehab center and orphanage. We used Kit's method of inquiry to see what these ministries are up to!