The Neighborhood and the Nations

Soon we stop the car to visit a greenhouse farming project. We walk down to the valley where big white tents that look like loosely inflated hot-air balloons cover rows of onions and tomatoes. The soil in this region is acidic and hard to cultivate, but the greenhouse collective helps both growth and food security. The women from the village who work this project can take a truckload of goods to the market after harvest and get a much better price than they would doing it alone. During our visit they sing to us and worship, giving God thanks for the harvest. They invite us to dance with them, and at first we’re reluctant, but soon we’re coaxed into the circle and we let go of our Western reserve. 

Later in the day we stop by a bakery that’s managed and staffed by orphans. We taste their sweetbread and talk about business models, expansion and what it takes to brand their product for growth in the Rwandan market. Being part of the bakery has literally changed the lives of these orphans, providing them with money to buy shelter and food. 

Then we visit with Jacqueline, a small business owner who turned a micro loan into a thriving garment business. She started with one sewing machine, making garments on her own, and now she has 20 sewing machines and employs many garment makers. We discussed her dreams of building a warehouse to employ hundreds of Rwandan workers in the coming years. All of these initiatives were accomplished through small investments that gave birth to exponential gains for real people—our brothers and sisters in Christ in Africa.

Meet Jacqueline.  

Back in the car Stearns and I follow up with another conversation about having a clear vision for the extreme needs in the world.

“We were meant to go into the world as revolutionaries to reform, restore, redeem and reclaim every dimension of creation in the name Christ—that’s the mission,” he says. “The challenge for all of us is to see the world through God’s eyes. Two-thirds of the world lives in abject poverty, and it breaks the heart of God.”

Local vs. Global

But what about the local needs in the U.S., especially in impoverished communities? Should American churches with little to no economic vitality sacrifice local outreach for global good? It’s a relevant question, and one that comes up often on the trip.

The other pastors traveling with us come from a wide variety of backgrounds but mostly from urban settings. This area of tension—between local livelihood and international activism—is a frequent discussion. For urban churches, does global outreach come at too high a cost? And is international compassion work even an option for the urban church made up of struggling, below-poverty-level Americans?

Charles Jenkins, recording artist and pastor of Fellowship Church in Chicago, knows this tension well. The median income in Fellowship’s surrounding community is well below the poverty level, the murder rate is skyrocketing and the need for equality and justice is palpable. Jenkins believes leaders should use discernment and contextualize their situation, but he also sees the need for a mutual flow between local and global initiatives.

“I think if your presence is only where you are and nothing flows out, you become a swamp and not a river,” Jenkins says. “In rivers, things flow in, and they flow out. So I think there’s an expectation that instead of a concentration of where we are, there must be a flow beyond where we are.”

For Jenkins, the need for the American church to be involved in global issues came on a trip to Ethiopia with Scott Harrison’s Charity Water in 2010. Seeing the isolated villages, the poorest parts of the country and the urgent need for resources became his global aha moment.

Brian Orme
Brian Ormewww.brianorme.com

Brian is the editor of Outreach magazine, ChurchLeaders.com, and SermonCentral.com. He works with creative and innovative people to discover the best resources, trends and practices to equip the church to lead better every day. He lives in Ohio with his wife, Jenna, and their four boys.

Fit for the Kingdom

The Lord prompted Reardon to think about combining Christian fellowship with fitness in order to create a new small group for men.

4 Reminders for Discouraged Parents

Parenting can be hard, so let these truths encourage you.

Lessons From the Early Church

The early church can show us that through patience and careful cultural discernment, we can navigate the torrents of modern culture.