tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4848834206307148048.post1619353675844373270..comments2023-10-31T15:16:47.885+02:00Comments on vathi va toko wirimu: Alan's solution (?) to global povertyAlan and Rachel Howellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08896677866185339729noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4848834206307148048.post-8128762726301331222010-01-23T16:59:21.159+02:002010-01-23T16:59:21.159+02:00Alan,
Your thoughts are well conceived and commun...Alan, <br />Your thoughts are well conceived and communicated and resonated with me.<br /><br />You said, "Unfortunately...it has become easier and easier to isolate ourselves from the poor – they are not really with us anymore. We don’t know very many poor people and that makes it difficult for us to help on a personal level."<br /><br />As a suburban dweller living outside of our city, I could not agree more. I have friends who are intentionally moving from the whitewashed suburbs into Memphis for the purpose of creating intentional contact opportunities with the poor. God bless them! I do not sense God calling me to move, yet. But I do, however, sense God calling me to create/promote contact opportunities for our church families (Adults, teenagers AND CHILDREN!) It is my desire to move us from surface contact opportunities (service projects, mission trips) to building relationships. This is a tough move to make when you are not continually present among the poor. <br />I, too, am very much an agnostic when it comes to believing in any government's ability to bring about change on the macro level. John Perkins is right when he says, "I believe there is only one group of people in society who can overcome these obstacles [to solutions of urban poverty]. God's people have solutions that are qualitatively different from any other approach to the poor. The best that God's people have to offer is relationships with the poor that reflect the kind of careful, quality attention we have in our own families. This is the high quality of relationships offered by people seeking to "love their neighbor as themselves." (Beyond Charity: The Call to Christian Community Development, p. 28)<br />BarryBrotherbearyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02985028524782114140noreply@blogger.com