"Go to the people.
Live with them,
learn from them,
love them.
Start with what they know,
build with what they have.
But of the best leaders,
when the work is done,
the task accomplished,
The people will say,
"We have done this ourselves."
This Chinese poem was written by Lao-Tzu around 700 B.C, but it was popularized more recently by Dr. John Perkins. Dr. Perkins is the founder of Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) and has been an inspiration to both Serenity and I. The CCDA has three "Rs" of ministry:
Relocation
Reconciliation
Redistribution
These have been behind much of the heartbeat of the Jubilee Food Pantry and Mustard Seed Ministries.
Relocating to the broken places of this world, much like Jesus did. As John 1:14 says: "The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood" (The Message). Reconciliation to God and our neighbors. And the easy one (at least easier than the other two): redistributing what the Lord has given to us because things are temporary (Matt 6:19-21).
What I love about the above poem is that it is embedded with humility. When all of this is said and done, when the Lord has transformed Hubbard through the Jubilee Food Pantry, community gardens, and neighborhood block parties, when God's Kingdom is more evident on our streets, everyone will look at each other and say "We have done this ourselves." No one will remember Andy and Serenity, rather, folks will just see God working through each of them.
When we place loving people at the center of everything we are about, God's Kingdom outshines anything we can do ourselves.
Reconciliation
Redistribution
These have been behind much of the heartbeat of the Jubilee Food Pantry and Mustard Seed Ministries.
Relocating to the broken places of this world, much like Jesus did. As John 1:14 says: "The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood" (The Message). Reconciliation to God and our neighbors. And the easy one (at least easier than the other two): redistributing what the Lord has given to us because things are temporary (Matt 6:19-21).
What I love about the above poem is that it is embedded with humility. When all of this is said and done, when the Lord has transformed Hubbard through the Jubilee Food Pantry, community gardens, and neighborhood block parties, when God's Kingdom is more evident on our streets, everyone will look at each other and say "We have done this ourselves." No one will remember Andy and Serenity, rather, folks will just see God working through each of them.
When we place loving people at the center of everything we are about, God's Kingdom outshines anything we can do ourselves.
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