CCD Saturday: fcs urban perspectives

In his books Toxic Charity, Charity Detox, and Compassion, Justice, and the Christian Life, Bob Lupton challenges our paradigms of compassion and helping that are well intended but often unknowingly are paternalistic.  If you're interested in continuing to learn from the wisdom and experience of Lupton, you can sign up to get FCS newsletters here.

From this month's newsletter focusing on parity rather than charity:

"But what if we really wanted to forge genuine, trusting relationships? What if we wanted to engage as peers rather than patrons? Perhaps we would seek out activities providing a level playing field, like a soccer (or chess!) tournament. Or indigenous students teaching us conversational Spanish as we teach them English. Or employing experts in local culture and history – perspectives unlikely to appear in tourist brochures and guide books. Or having village elders impart wisdom borne of scarcity – faith journeys about which Western Christians know very little.

 

Parity eliminates pity. If we seek out talents and abilities rather than deficits and needs, we might encounter spiritual wealth that largely eludes the materially wealthy American missioner." 

 -Bob Lupton, June Urban Perspectives

 

CCD Saturday: on hospitality

Following are quotes from Just Hospitality: God's Welcome in a World of Difference by Letty M. Russell

"Hospitality is the practice of God's welcome by reaching across difference to participate in God's actions bringing justice and healing to our world in crisis."

"Practicing God's hospitality means that I am constantly looking for ways to empower other outsiders in the institutions where I work and live.  I always have to ask myself as I gather with a group, 'Who is missing? Who are the ones whose voice is not heard?'"

"In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus promises to be with those who offer hospitality to the least of our brothers and sisters.  From this it would seem that hospitality can be understood as solidarity with strangers, a mutual relationship of care and trust in which we share in the struggle for empowerment, dignity, and fullness of life.  The word for hospitality in the Greek New Testament is philoxenia, love of the stranger.  Its opposite is xenophobia, hatred of the stranger.  The ministry of the church is to be partners with strangers, to welcome those whom Christ welcomed, and thus learn to be a community in which people are made one in Jesus Christ in spite of their different classes, religious backgrounds, genders, races, and ethnic groups."

CCD Saturday: Gentrification with Justice

Across the country, people are moving back into the urban centers. Properties once abandoned or neglected are being bought up, and trendy lofts, shops, and restaurants are fast replacing areas that were eyesores for years.  Even Waterloo, Iowa's downtown is making welcome and beautiful changes thanks to some committed developers and investors.  As cities cheer on new economic development, and as wealth comes back into inner city areas (gentrification), what happens to those among lower income brackets who live there? How can we bring revitalization to our downtowns and neighborhoods without continuing the patterns of displacement and segregation?  How can we gentrify with justice? Bob Lupton offers some practices for gentrification with justice below in this article written for the Verge Network: 

Harnessing Gentrification for the Sake of the Kingdom

The definitive works have yet to be written on how to harness gentrification for the purposes of the Kingdom. However, a few guiding principles are rising to the surface from some of the best practices around the country. Here are just a few:

Gentrification is. Some rail against it; others laud its arrival. For good or ill, it is our new reality. And it will only increase in the years to come. It means welcome new economic and social life for our cities and, with the pro-active involvement of the saints, can introduce a whole new era of hopefulness for the poor. Our mantra must be: gentrification with justice.

Diversity is a gift. Communities that are economically and racially mixed can be the richest of environments for families as well as singles and older adults. Diverse community is God's plan, the final destination toward which all the righteous are heading to the City of our God where people of every tribe, every nation, every tongue will take up eternal residence.

Community doesn't just happen. Especially diverse community. It must be built. Focused and sustained effort must be invested in getting to know neighbors, organizing community activities, modeling neighborliness and communicating good news. Love of neighbor must be practical and visible over time.

Indigenous neighbors are a treasure. It is easy to ignore seniors, easy to push on past less communicative neighbors, easy to exclude those who don't show up at community functions. But the rich history of the neighborhood is imbedded in the lives and family albums of long term residents. The effort to extract and honor this history is well worth the time and effort. And everyone, no matter how unlikely, has some valuable talent to contribute to the life of the community.

Economic viability is essential. A community will not be healthy unless it has ample neighbors with discretionary income to attract and sustain businesses. The gentry are essential. However, justice demands that we ensure that the poor are embraced and included as beneficiaries in a healthy community.

God's shalom must be worked at. The roles of peacemakers, communicators, gatherers, organizers, connectors are some of the most vital talents needed for the establishment of peace and prosperity and a prevailing sense of well-being that God desires for His creation. Shalom is not merely the absence of crime on the street, it is the prevailing presence of peace and goodness in the relationships of God's diverse family. It is achieved only by intentional effort.

CCD Saturday: learning from others ahead on the journey

Just to give you an example of a CCD ministry that is tied to a church (Tapestry Church) in Raleigh, North Carolina, check out N2N, or Neighbor to Neighbor.  Royce Hathcock, another CCDA cohort friend of mine, directs this ministry that "cultivates life-changing relationships resulting in communities of hope, justice, and compassion."

Part of being inspired, trained, and networked in Christian Community Development is learning from the wisdom, experiences, and best practices of other CCD ministries throughout our country.  I have called, studied, visited, and gleaned from multiple ministries over the past ten years to learn how to better walk in the calling of Christian Community Development.     

I love what God is doing through Neighbor to Neighbor..take a look at the video below, and I believe you will too!



Neighbor to Neighbor from neighbor to neighbor on Vimeo.

CCD Saturday: ladder down the change

Community problems run deep and wide, and I can easily find myself in meetings where the talk is about the gaping educational achievement gap for minorities, or the blight of neglected neighborhoods, or the increase in gun violence, the need for employment opportunities, or the work for more temporary shelters and affordable housing. These ARE all significant problems to solve together toward a healthier community, but Saturday reminded me that while strategizing and mobilizing for the Biggies, we can also ladder our way down to some very simple ways to build community and care about our neighborhoods.  

Saturday's 2nd annual Zinnia Blast found neighbors rallying around pink and purple and orange annual flowers that will adorn several corners of the Walnut Neighborhood and will brighten the front steps and porches of several neighbors.  After four hours of visiting and working side by side with neighbors, it was apparent that the small act of planting flowers and beautifying the neighborhood can have a BIG affect...helping neighbors come to know neighbors, strengthening neighborhood through collective action, and beautifying an area with the bright and bold colors of summer.  

Jesus was all about the power of the small.  While coming to save humanity through the big work on the cross, he also demonstrated the power of the small through a conversation at the well with a Samaritan woman, through inviting children to gather around him, through making breakfast for his friends on the beach.  

In the midst of working toward big systemic change, we cannot forget the need to ladder down the change with very tangible, very concrete small acts of love that turn out to be not so small after all.

CCD Saturday: with

It was 2009, and I was driving a nine year old boy back to his apartment at the House of Hope after he went on an outing with our family.  As we approached the Walnut Neighborhood, I pointed out a big church in the neighborhood that was for sale, and I shared with this youngster a dream of having such a great building where we could have a lot of cool things going on for young people.  I'll never forget his response:

"Please don't tell me that it would just be for poor kids."  

I.'s statement arrested my heart.  He offered a defining moment for me and helped to shape the vision, mission, and strategy of Link Christian Development. At the same time I.'s words were spoken, I was learning through Christian Community Development Association about the difference of being IN, FOR, and WITH a neighborhood.  

CCD is about WITH. Link CCD is about linking people and places WITH one another in order to join Jesus in his restoring mission in the world.  This requires a paradigm shift from a paternalistic FOR to a reconciling community WITH.  

Journeying WITH.  Learning WITH. Serving WITH. Forming friendships WITH. Studying the Bible and worshiping WITH. Building community WITH.  Seeking justice WITH.  Doing more of life WITH.

CCD Saturday: focus

Focus is critical for Christian community development.

The needs are so big and so wide and so great in our community.  So often, big and wide efforts to address big and wide needs result in big and wide confusion and fail to mobilize resources, build momentum, and ultimately fail to build relationships needed for the wholistic transformation that is needed.  

Focus and clear next steps, even if small, can provide tangible results that help to build toward a greater and grander vision.  

Focus will ultimately expand mission.  

“Focusing is about saying No.” 

― Steve Jobs

CCD Saturday: small and big

Christian community development is both small and big.  It's lived out in the small gestures of good neighboring.  Like the 3 pies that Judy Marshall and I delivered to new renters last Saturday.  Or a weekly prayer walk that allows us to pray for each home and family in the neighborhood as well as pick up trash along the sidewalks and streets.

It's also big.  Like having conversations and taking action steps for mixed income housing redevelopment, more home owner occupied homes, and creating a long view vision of holistic neighborhood revitalization.  It's considering the need and opportunities for jobs and economic strengthening that would help keep dollars circulating in the neighborhood and community.  

CCD Saturday: The New Normal

In order for God to be about new creation, some of the old creation has to get confronted and challenged. I'm learning through Christian Community Development, that I just have to name uncomfortable feelings as a new normal for myself.  As God works to challenge a lot of my preconceived assumptions about 'the way things are', as I grow more of a lens regarding systemic injustice, and as I sit at the table with people different from me, I find that in order for me to stay honest, open, and willing to keep taking steps forward, I first have to be aware and accept that I will experience an array of thoughts and feelings that I need to sit with and wrestle with..and sometimes just live in the tension with indefinitely.  

CCD Saturday: Stay close to the ground

When you look at the life of Jesus, he stayed on the ground, walked among the community, and went to where the people were in their day to day lives.    

The philosophy of CCD is an incarnational philosophy.

How much time is being spent with people in the day to day life of the community? How much time is being spent inside of walls at a desk, at meetings, with committees?  Certainly, there's a tension to live with, but I find that if I'm not careful, I can quickly become disconnected from the very voice and people I say that I value.  I have to intentionally schedule my life in a way that helps me to be present, incarnational, in the flesh,  within our community.  

CCD Saturday: Renew and Reorder

Dr. Perkins' visit to the Cedar Valley has created a lot of interest and desire to continue learning about CCD (Christian Community Development)!  So exciting to have the encouragement of John Perkins and to see God's movement from past to present.  

Since I do best with some structures, I thought I would dedicate Saturdays to post about learnings and musings on this calling and journey called Christian Community Development.

A learning that I'm still learning....

CCD is a lifestyle.  It is a philosophy of ministry that God uses to "deconstruct and unlearn" a faulty belief and operating system that the world has formed in us...and it "constructs and teaches" us to be transformed by the renewing of our mind (Romans 12:2) into a Kingdom of God worldview.  

It is not a project.  It is not a program.  CCD is a new way of seeing and being in the world with Jesus and the Kingdom of God teaching us to do everything he has commanded us to do (Matthew 28:20).  As we follow Christ, he reorders our values and lives into His life and Kingdom.  This is my ongoing development through CCD...it is really a journey of spiritual growth and discipleship.