Worth a Click

One of my favorite books about community transformation is Theirs is the Kingdom by Robert D. Lupton. What I like most about the book is that it is not a book about strategy, as much as it is a book about heart--a leader's hearts, the heart of the impoverished and God's heart. I'll warn you that it can be difficult to read because every page challenges your motivations to serve the poor and your assumptions about them. Honest and thought-provoking, you can read this in less than a day. Here's one of the many gems:

It takes everyone of us to make His Body complete, for we each have a different work to do. So we belong to each other, and each needs all the others. (Romans 12:4,5)

"I need the poor? For what? The question exposes my blindness. I see them as weak ones to be rescued, not as bearers of the treasure of the kingdom. The dominance of my giving overshadows and stifles the rich endowments the Creator has invested in those I consider destitute. I overlook what our Lord saw clearly when he proclaimed the poor to be especially blessed, because theirs is the kingdom of God (Luke 6:20). I selectively ignore the truth that monied, empowered and learned ones enter his kingdom with enormous difficulty." (For Theirs is The Kingdom, Robert D. Lupton, HarperCollins, New York NY, 1989, pg.6)

I have used this book as a supplement to leading my small group studies and devotions. I suggest you purchase it through Lupton's community development organization, Family Consultation Service (FCS), a nonprofit counseling agency for low-income clients in urban Altanta. By doing so, you might sent more profits their way. Originally serving children and families referred by area juvenile courts, FCS broadened its mission to pursue lasting solutions to some of the underlying causes of poverty. Here is the link: http://www.fcsministries.org/about.htm. I'm getting a couple of his other books to read during the Colorado meltdown this winter. I look forward to sharing gems from those as well. Keep Warm!