POVERTY resources

4/17/09

by: MAMrrsn

I'd like to recommend 2 excellent and new resources on the topic of POVERTY as well as a related website and blog.

BOOK---Loving Our Neighbor: A Thoughtful Approach to Helping People in Poverty by Beth Lindsay Templeton

Loving Our Neighbor provides practical advice for churches, businesses, civic organizations, school groups, and individuals who need seasoned guidance in making wise and compassionate decisions when approached for financial donations.

Beth Templeton is a minister who clearly understands both the heart of the charitable organization and the need for focus and planning when it comes to helping those in need. She relies on twenty-five years of experience as a nonprofit executive at United Ministries to:

* Provide an understanding of the Biblical call to help
* Assist others in comprehending a life of poverty
* Advise the different ways to aid those battling financial hardship
* Illustrate how to organize a direct ministry for a church
* Facilitate others in gaining a deeper understanding of the social and economic conditions that lead to poverty

Templeton shares fresh insights, thought-provoking lessons, and timeless wisdom that exemplify an organized and compassionate process that includes various approaches designed to help others decide how, when, and whom to help in times of need. Loving Our Neighbor encourages building relationships with those who can benefit from assistance, ultimately enriching their lives in countless ways.

Available from iUniverse.com or Amazon.com.

DVD--Servant or Sucker? Wise and Compassionate Ways to Help the Poor

We’ve all been there. Someone, obviously poor or homeless, approaches you and asks for money. What do you do? Do you give money, knowing it may be used on drugs or alcohol or do you say “no” or even ignore the person as you walk by? No one wants to be a sucker in these situations but at the same time Jesus’ call to help the poor echoes in our hearts and minds. Servant or Sucker? Wise and Compassionate Ways to Help the Poor helps viewers discern appropriate, Christ-centered actions when it comes to addressing poverty on a personal or organizational level. Included are realities of poverty such as the concepts of time, relationships, money and values; a “poverty tour”; interviews with those who are homeless or poor; interviews with those who have helped and/or have been suckered; and steps viewers can take to be an effective servant without getting suckered. A free leader’s guide is included on the DVD.

Available from EcuFilm.

These two resources are sound in practice and based on years of trial and error in relating to people in poverty here in Greenville, SC. Rev. Beth Templeton is a member of Foothills Presbytery and our foremost advocate for the poor. Her service as Director of United Ministries has given her the wisdom of "wise and compassionate ways" to help. In the last few years she has developed a new arm of United Ministries called "Our Eyes Were Opened" which serves to help educate churches, schools and civic groups in how to practice compassion. Visit the website to find out more.

WEBSITE + BLOG www.oureyeswereopened.org

Mary A. Morrison
Associate for Vocations & Education
Foothills Presbytery

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