In a recent column by Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor, argues that the labor shortage is unrelated to boosted unemployment benefits and that the price hikes do not necessarily follow from the wage hikes and that the real winners of these economic conditions are low-wage workers. TCI’s Nathan Mayo unwraps Reich’s analysis to find that there is not much meat in his argument.
Challenging, relational programs are an effective path to life transformation. The only downside to such models is that they usually require a high ratio of staff and volunteers to clients. Ascent Recovery proves that there is another way.
In 2006, Jay and Julie St. Clair helped transform a ramshackle apartment complex known on the street as “The Last Resort” into an urban transitional housing program they christened “God’s Resort.” From the original few units, God’s Resort has expanded to now offer nearly 40 housing units…
Cover of Who Really Cares book
This book can be purchased on Amazon.com.
In Who Really Cares: America’s Charity Divide, Arthur Brooks sets out to answer three questions: who gives, who doesn’t, and why does it matter? America is by far the most generous nation in the world – both in percentage of income financial giving and non-monetary contributions like volunteer time and organ donation. However…
The fight for the $15 minimum wage is heralded as the way for low-income workers to earn a decent living and possibly lift them out of poverty. This claim sounds reasonable, but it is founded on two unspoken assumptions — that the poor currently work and that they will continue to work once higher minimum wages take effect. Unfortunately, these two assumptions are not the reality.
Helping Without Hurting: In Church Benevolence, by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, succinctly answers the question of how to put principles of When Helping Hurts into practice. A short book with an easy to follow layout, this volume refreshes the theory and hammers out the details of how to implement a truly helpful benevolence program.
Pastor John “Chip” Boyd recalls that prior to 2011, Journey Church’s ministry focus was almost 100% internal. With a small church of only 130 members, they did not expect to change their predominantly poor urban neighborhood in Joplin, Missouri. When a devastating tornado ripped through their town in 2011, they were jolted to consider how they could help their neighbors. This question was amplified by a Wisconsin-based missions company that used Journey as a platform for a short-term mission trip to assist with tornado rehabilitation.
“Researchers gave thousands of dollars to homeless people. The results defied stereotypes.” “Cash transfers help homeless to find stable housing and jobs.” “Trailblazing study gave homeless $7,500 [CAD] – and it worked.” These recent headlines and articles about a new Canadian study are a cringeworthy — and destructive — distortion of reality.
As the holidays approach, many churches and nonprofits run programs to give Christmas gifts to kids in need, and many more partner with existing national programs. The traditional toy drive is simple. Donors buy gifts and volunteers distribute them. The volunteers either go to the homes of the children or have a day of distribution in a central location. Kids smile, donors feel good … everyone’s better off, right? Unfortunately – it’s not that simple.
Feeding the hungry is one of the oldest forms of charity and seems like it should be simple. However, as many know from years of practice, even when food is collected, stored, and distributed efficiently, it still may not reduce dependency or change lives.
The good news is that there are innovative approaches to solve the issues created by the standard hand-out model.
