The Verge Network offered these 7 free resources for Christmas. They are still available for download.

1. Free Book Chapter from Radical by David Platt

2. Free Album download by Propaganda – Art Ambidextrous

3. Free Book Chapter from A Meal With Jesus by Tim Chester

4. Free Book Chapter from Missional Communities by Reggie McNeal

5. Free eBook, Simple Ways To Be Missional

6. Free Video from Francis Chan: On The Verge

7. Free Video download from George Patterson: Disciple-making 101

Click here to see the whole post.

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God Is Sovereign Over the Lives of the Poor

First, we looked at positioning our hearts in such a way that we come to the poor knowing that we too are in poverty apart from Christ – drawing us to an absolute and utter reliance upon Him for this life and eternity (Part II). Second, we reflected on the fact that there is much to learn and gain from the locals, and that we are called to edify and build the local Body of believers in their call to leadership.

There is a third piece that should be understood when seeking practical ways of serving the poor (and this is a huge piece), that God is sovereign over the lives of the poor. Many people don’t like that, but it’s true. He is their Provider, their Sustainer, their Redeemer, not us. This is a major implication that separates gospel-centric groups from secular humanitarianism and even some forms of Christian humanitarian organizations. The common misperception of non gospel-centric groups is that this world is falling apart and is now in need of man to figure out how to save it by some form of intellectual superiority. However, the Bible tells us that this world is falling apart because of sin. And God, by His grace alone, has purposed that He would reveal His power, authority, provision, and ultimately His redemption. It just so happens that He often chooses to use His people to actively accomplish His purposes. This is the beauty and privilege of serving Christ – that we might be used for eternal purposes, and that all of the glory goes to God!

“This is ministry”

If we do not understand this critical point, we will fall prey to taking credit for what is due only to the Lord Almighty– “for all things are from Him and through Him and to Him, to God be glory alone” [Romans 11:36, emphasis mine]. Second, if we do not understand God’s sovereignty, we are tempted to take things into our own hands, which can cause divisions and jealousy within the body of Christ. Following the Haiti Earthquake, I heard very sad stories of Christian organizations stepping on and maligning one another, all for the purpose of getting the “corner on the relief market.” The person telling me these stories said, “this is ministry” with a long sigh, implying that competition is just the reality of the ministry efforts. Wrong. This is NOT ministry! God will care for the poor, and does not need us to act in ungodly ways in order to accomplish His purposes. May we trust in the Lord in our service and seek to abide in Him as He so graciously calls us to His service.

(A list of passages that describes God’s sovereignty over the poor is located below.)

Practical Implications of Interventions

Now that we have worked towards gaining an understanding of how our hearts should be positioned, I want to offer some practical “feet on the ground” considerations when serving the poor.

Prayer first

The first implication is by and large the importance of prayer! If God is sovereign over all creation and if our work is absolutely nothing apart from Christ, then we should be praying for His direction, His wisdom, and His provision (John 15:1-16). I can’t overstate this most critical manner of working out our faith in following Christ concerning the poor.

Second, in terms of approaching projects in a practical way, poverty alleviation is very comprehensive and may include projects that focus on top-down (policy, systems) and bottom-up (grassroots implementation) methods. While it is outside the scope of this particular blog to delve into these methods, there is an abundance of resources available that offer in-depth instruction and analysis. As a beginning point, Corbett and Fikkert offer a good overview of the literature, covering key areas as the relief-rehabilitation-development paradigm and current models of development.

I’ve included some practical questions that can be asked when supporting and/or serving in the work of poverty alleviation:

1. Is it the correct intervention?
   What is the issue and cause of poverty being addressed? Does the intervention reflect this? I.e. relief (short term solution) being administered when the intervention really calls for development (long term solution).
2. How is the gospel being prioritized and presented?
   What is the state of the local church? What is the local context and what are the ministry needs? While there is no one answer to how the gospel should be presented, a local organization or group should certainly be intentional with the ongoing of this most important aspect.
3. Are the locals participating in each aspect of the project’s planning, implementation, and evaluation?
4. How do you know that real change is happening?
   Evaluating interventions from a physical and spiritual perspective can be very difficult at times, particularly when considering spiritual growth. Organizations and churches should be intentional with evaluating how their resources and time are utilized.

Endnotes [emphasis mine]

Biblical passages of God’s sovereignty over the poor:

[14] But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation, that you may take it into your hands; to you the helpless commits himself; you have been the helper of the fatherless. (Ps 10:14)

[16] The Lord is king forever and ever; the nations perish from his land. [17] O Lord , you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear [18] to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more. (Ps 10:16-18)

[5] “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” (Ps 12:5)

[10] For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in. (Ps 27:10)

[10] All my bones shall say, “O Lord, who is like you, delivering the poor from him who is too strong for him, the poor and needy from him who robs him?” (Ps 35:10)

[4] May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor! (Ps 72:4)

[12] For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper. [13] He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy. [14] From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight. (Ps 72:12-14)

[3] “Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. [4] “Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” (Ps 82:3-4)

[41] but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks. (Ps 107:41)

[5] Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, [6] who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? [7] He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, [8] to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people. [9] He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord! (Ps 113:5-9)

[7] [The Lord] who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; (Ps 146:7)

[9] The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin. (Ps 146:9)

[17] When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the Lord will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. [18] I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. [19] I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, [20] that they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it. (Isaiah 41:17-20)

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Now, let’s make disciples, church! Go!

(HT: Nick)

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Now that we have discussed a biblical framework for the nature and causes of poverty, we can look at how interventions may be approached in a way that is glorifying to God. Interventions are the projects that we engage in when seeking to address an issue of poverty. In the following two posts, we will focus more upon the positioning of our hearts in how we approach interventions. The next post offers a few practical questions that we should ask when engaging in a particular project.

Interventions

If we hold that the causes of poverty are multifaceted; we (personally and organizationally) should not feel burdened to address every aspect of poverty ourselves. This is the beauty of the Body of Christ and the unity of the saints in serving the poor according to the spiritual gifts and measure of faith given to each one of us (Romans 12:3-8). We should therefore understand our specific calling and gifts, and seek to mobilize the calling and gifts of others throughout the process. Ultimately, we must approach the throne of grace and cling on to Christ in all we do if our service is to bear any fruit (John 15:1-11).

Recognizing the Value and Offerings of the Local Church

At this point, we need to have a clear understanding that the assets of the people at the local level are incredibly rich and critical to every work of poverty alleviation. Two critical points that are brought out by Scripture are: (1) man has been created in the likeness of God and (2) each believer has been granted spiritual gifts that are to be utilized for the mutual building up of the Body of Christ (Genesis 1:26, Romans 12:3-8, 1 Peter 4:10,11). As such, there is absolutely no place for sketchy paternalism that places Westerners in the position of superiority, power, and knowledge. Each body part needs the other.

Have you ever been in a situation where you were serving someone with a need, and they ended up serving you in the process? This often happens to Christians ministering in the developing world. Anyone who has invested in and formed relationships with our brethren in the developing context has most likely learned much through these friendships and has been encouraged to follow Christ in more passionate, authentic ways.

Corbett and Fikkert illustrate several areas of paternalism that Westerners often exploit when serving the poor (pp. 115-119):

1. Resource Paternalism – “Let’s throw money at the problem and it will go away.”

2. Spiritual Paternalism – “It is up to us to teach the material poor about God.”

3. Knowledge Paternalism – “We have all of the best ideas and the business know-how.”

4. Labor Paternalism – “We need to do all of the work.”

5. Managerial Paternalism – “Get what we think should be done as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

To some of us, these descriptions may seem rather extreme.  But the reality is that so many of us have engaged in some form of paternalism while serving the poor—through our actions, thoughts, and/or words.  We need to ask ourselves whether our interventions are edifying and building up of the poor—as having the same identity in Christ and as fellow co-laborers for the Kingdom—or if our actions and words are contributing to a sense of inferiority or ungodly dependencies. If our interventions are edifying and building up, then we will seek to engage the locals in each aspect of the development process by seeking to discern where God has gifted each one of us in the Body.  In an ideal situation, the locals will be empowered to lead while we support as the Lord directs.

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[This is the second part in a blog series on Worldview and Social Change]

The causes of poverty are closely related to the nature or ‘definition’ of poverty in many ways. For the purposes of this blog series, the ‘nature of poverty’ acts as a theological framework for understanding poverty whereby the ‘causes of poverty’ act as a practical application to these theological underpinnings.

Causes

In When Helping Hurts, the authors do well to illustrate differing perspectives on how worldview informs causes and actions (see accompanying recreated figure). Oftentimes, we try to isolate one issue as the major cause of poverty. However, if we hold that sin has truly pervaded all aspects of human life, we might be more inclined to agree with the selection of authors mentioned in Part II who suggest that there are many issues that collectively contribute to the problem of poverty. Often times, it is spoken that there are no “silver bullets” to alleviating poverty, which is certainly true if we hold that sin has reached all mankind, every system, and indeed, all of creation (Romans 8:18-24).

First, it is critical that we do not fall into the temptation of dichotomizing the spiritual and physical aspects of poverty, as government institutions have labored towards. As Westerners, our society tends towards a scientific view of problems and solutions. This is not the case in the global South. In fact, a spiritual cause and effect will often be interpreted, whether we are cognizant of this or not. For example, what we see as a scientifically proven medical cause may be viewed by the local people as the work of a witch doctor in the spiritual realm. If we have a holistic view of poverty, we will take on a broader perspective of what the causes of poverty are – which directly inform the interventions we take on. And, if service to the poor is to be Kingdom focused, the intentional integration of the gospel message will be prerequisite.

Second, if the nature of poverty truly is theological at its core, extending out towards the psychological, social, and physical spheres of life (as proposed by Keller), then we are led to believe that the causes of poverty can and should be viewed at a variety of very different levels. These causes of sin in the heart of man may therefore be at a personal level (spending income on drugs and alcohol, lack of opportunities, damaging worldviews) or a systematic level (corruption, oppression, government policies). Oftentimes, multiple causes are involved, which is clearly the case in the sex slave industry example given in Part II (as exemplified by Keller’s terms):

Theological – Wrong view of God causes the family to sell their child for slave labor
Psychological – Child slave views themself as worthless to God and man
Social – Oppression and evildoing from watchful authorities; child is stigmatized from society
Physical – Lack of work opportunities; disease and fear of treatment

…and the list goes on.

Summing up what has been discussed thus far, we see that a biblical worldview informs how we view the poor, the nature of poverty rooted in the Fall, and the practical ways of how sin has pervaded the many different aspects that contribute to poverty. The good news is that Christ has already accomplished His work of redemption, and we can be assured that one day there will be no more suffering and no more poverty! In the meantime, Christ has called His people to reflect His power and redemption by being the hands, feet, and mouthpiece of Christ in our present circumstances of suffering and poverty.

In the next part of this series, we will take a closer look at this call.

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[This is the second part in a blog series on Worldview and Social Change]

Part II: The Nature of Poverty

In Part I, we looked at the concept of social change and how each of us, knowingly or unknowingly, contributes as agent of change from the moment we enter into a missional context.  The question is: Are we serving the poor and promoting change that is Christ-centered and glorifying to God or have we fallen prey to worldly perspectives on this subject?

In Part I of this series, we saw that a biblical worldview of social change can be broken down into 4 broad categories along a continuum of accomplishing a desired change.  In our Worldview and Social Change series, we will take a look at how a biblical worldview informs each of these categories which will hopefully raise discussion on how we can ultimately be agents of change that glorify God!

The Nature of Poverty

Our Poverty before an Almighty God

Prior to jumping into discussions about the causes, interventions, and desired change in poverty alleviation, I firmly believe that a solid theological foundation and heart positioning must be established.  This foundation begins with the gospel of Jesus Christ – that we are in absolute poverty before the face of an Almighty God who has given us His one and only Son Jesus Christ that we might have eternal life (John 3:16).

The common “poverty as deficit” perspective, as it is coined, views the poor as those who are lacking necessary goods which can be provided by those of us who have an abundance of resources.  This is a material only definition.  There are a variety of reasons why this view is much too limited.  First and foremost, God’s Word is clear that we ourselves are impoverished in spirit before the face of an Almighty God. We thereby recognize the magnificent work of our Savior, Jesus Christ on the cross for us (Psalm 63:1-8; Luke 6:21,24-25).  Therefore, we find ourselves in a place of realizing that we are nothing apart from Christ and that all we have and know is by the grace of God alone (Rom. 7:18).  We ought not to enter into a situation of material poverty as the “providers” riding in to town to save the day.  Rather, we ought to recognize our own poverty and enter a situation with a humble, complete, utter dependence upon God to empower and provide, for it is He alone who is the Provider (Psalm 10:14,16-18; Psalm 35:10; Psalm 72:12-14; Isaiah 41:17-20; 2 Co. 9:8).

Realizing our utter dependence upon Christ out of a place of poverty should be our absolute beginning point if we are to share the eternal, lifesaving hope of knowing Jesus Christ as Lord with those who are living in material poverty.  This is the ultimate Good News!  And sadly, we have NO news for the poor if we don’t first recognize our life of poverty before the face of God ourselves.  Furthermore, if we come to the poor out of a place of poverty, then we are positioned to serve the poor as those who are likewise created in the image of God rather than from a place of paternalism, pride, and self-righteousness.  To be poor is to be humble, and we are called to model the humility of our Servant-King, Jesus Christ.  This should always be our starting point when serving the poor.

Poverty as a Result of the Fall

A second point of discussion when reflecting on the nature of poverty is its source: the Fall.  Romans 8:18-24 tells us that sin has pervaded all aspects of human life giving us reason to believe that the nature of poverty is far more than material deprivation alone.  Bryant Myers suggests that poverty is multifaceted and should be viewed in light of relationships that have been broken by the Fall – relationships with God, self, others, and with the rest of creation.  He goes on to suggest that sin has pervaded the spiritual, personal, social, cultural, and physical areas of life, each of which contribute to issues of poverty in different ways (Myers, 27; 81).  Timothy Keller likewise describes the nature of poverty or “human needs” as alienation from God, self, others, and nature.  Keller further suggests that the nature of poverty is theological at its core, extending to the psychological, social, and physical spheres of life (Keller, 46-51).

While it is important to look at the many different aspects of poverty, we need to be reminded that the issues of material poverty are very real and addressed forthrightly throughout the Bible.  Corbett and Fikkert summarize this point well: “The economically poor are singled out in Scripture as being in a particularly desperate category and as needing very special attention (Acts 6:1-7).  The fact that all of humanity has some things in common with the material poor does not negate their unique and overwhelming suffering nor the special place that they have in God’s heart, as emphasized throughout the Old and New Testaments (Corbett and Fikkert, 71).”

I know that some of these terms and ideas may seem a bit esoteric.  However, if we take a moment to consider how sin has crept its way into every facet of life, it may be easier than we think to discover application.  Let’s look at the sex slave industry as one example.  A family gives their child to someone for labor purposes so that they can feed their family (not knowing it’s the sex slave trade).  The child is rescued but left psychologically and emotionally scarred, socially stigmatized, diseased, and containing no practical skills to begin a productive life.  Let’s not forget to mention that the sex slave industry is sometimes allowed under the watchful eye of civil and government authorities.  While this child’s most critical need is found in Jesus Christ and Him alone, we see that the nature of this child’s poverty truly extends to many different areas whose source is the evil that has resulted from the Fall.

In the next post, we’ll take this discussion further in addressing the “causes” of poverty.

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[This is the first part in a new series on Worldview and Social Change]

Where is the Church?

In the 1990’s, Safe Harbor arrived in an extremely undeserved region of Sub-Saharan Africa that had recently suffered from rebel warfare and a cholera outbreak. Making matters worse, all this was occurring under conditions of low income levels, virtually no basic health services, poor infrastructure, and below-standard education. Furthermore, an evangelical church was nowhere to be found. As told by one of the community elders, this region’s fellow countrymen refused to help their own, calling the local people “baboons”. Given this little information, what are your immediate reactions to the following questions?

• What are the chief issues of poverty that should be addressed?
• What would your goals for this community be after 2 years? After 10 years? After 50 years?
• What are the steps required to take to begin to accomplish these goals?
• How would you know what is being accomplished?
• What about negative consequences? What would you want to prevent from happening in your service to this community?

Social change, poverty, and the Christian mission field

In previous Safe Harbor blog posts, I addressed issues of global poverty and missions while touching upon a concept called “social change”, which deals with the change in communities over time, vis-à-vis socio-economic, cultural, religious, structural change, etc. Any time an organization or person enters a community in order to accomplish a particular objective, that organization or person essentially becomes an agent of change.

Social change can be broken down into the nature of poverty, causes, interventions, and, finally, the desired change—all of which are analyzed according to one’s worldview. The following figure illustrates how one’s worldview permeates how one might approach each step of the social change ladder.

These concepts are absolutely critical to missions and poverty alleviation in that whether we realize it or not, the moment we step into another community with the aim to serve, we will contribute to some sort of change in the situation, one’s perception of the West, or in our case, one’s perception of the Church. At the end of the day, we need to ask ourselves: What is it that we are trying to accomplish and why?

Difficulty of defining the problem

In our technocratic society, many Westerners view poverty primarily in economic terms, believing that increased incomes will solve the problem of poverty. Others hold the view that poverty is caused by a lack of education, which leads to interventions rooted in better schooling. Secular cultural anthropologists may perceive social change in light of cultural preservation with interventions that foster ‘natural’ progression with little to no outside influence. This perspective may be particularly hostile to missions. The list of perspectives is broad, deep, highly debated, and invariably informed by the worldview that one holds.

A theology of social change

Within the church itself, the issue of social change has evolved into a more heated theological topic within circles of Christians, particularly younger generations who seek to “redefine” the role of the church when it comes to serving the poor. Some of the more liberal theological agendas within the American church have suggested that serving the poor is the gospel; some have suggested a movement towards asceticism. Still another stream of theology that is storming developing countries is the prosperity gospel. Meanwhile, I have noticed a generation of young Christians who are very concerned about the poor while being very serious about theological orthodoxy. This group, in which I include myself (except I’m not too young!), need not look to other movements for answers about serving the poor. The Bible so beautifully reveals to us that Jesus is the center of the gospel and that He has called us to love our neighbors through the lens of Christ-centeredness, which includes serving the poor in a way that focuses our hearts, as well as the hearts of those we serve, on Jesus Christ himself.

Seeking a biblical worldview

So what is this biblical worldview that should be informing our social change process? As a Christian, how would you answer this blog post’s initial questions differently from others in our society?

It is my aim and prayer that this blog series challenges us to take a deeper look into how we might be more faithful to God’s call in proclaiming Christ and serving the poor according to the Word of God, so that all glory and honor would be given where it belongs—to God alone!

Additional Notes for this Blog Series:

In When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself, Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert summarize these issues in a very clear and systematic way. This book gained notoriety in 2009/2010 when it was voted as one of the top 30 recommended books by World Magazine and has since earned excellent reviews from many, including Kevin DeYoung. For a more in-depth theological study of serving the poor, I would also recommend Timothy Keller’s Ministries of Mercy: The Call of the Jericho Road and Bryant L. Myers’ Walking with the Poor: Principles and Practices of Transformational Development. While I (as well as Safe Harbor) do not endorse everything that is suggested by the authors, their work challenges us to think about critical concepts of poverty alleviation from a biblical perspective. These books will be referenced throughout this series. ¹

¹ Steve Corbett is the community development specialist for Chalmers Center for Economic Development at Covenant College.
Brian Fikkert is an associate professor of economics at Covenant College and founder / executive director of the Chalmers Center for Economic Development.
Timothy Keller (M.Div, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary; D.Min., Westminster Theological Seminary) is senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, New York.
At the time of publication, Bryant L. Myers served as Vice President of International Program Strategy at World Vision International.

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If only us Orange County believers were so zealous for God’s Word. Lord, haste the day!

Video footage is from March 2010.

United Bible Societies:

This 5-minute video shows the emotions of the Kimyal community in West Papua, Indonesia, as they receive the first copies of the New Testament in their language in March 2010. Dancing, weeping and praying, the Kimyal people welcome God’s Word into their remote village and talk of how it will change their lives.

Work on the translation of the New Testament into Kimyal was begun in 1963 by Regions Beyond Mission Union (now World Team) missionaries Phil and Phyliss Masters who moved to West Papua, Indonesia, to evangelise the Kimyal people. Sadly, Phil Masters and a fellow missionary Stan Dale were killed by members of the neighbouring Yali tribe and the translation work was halted. However, the work eventually resumed and the New Testament was completed in early 2010 by a Kimyal translation team led by another World Team missionary, Rosa Kidd.

The Kimyal translators Welega Pusup and Menas Mirin, who had received instruction in translation principles during UBS Translation Workshops, played a key role in the translation team. UBS Translation Consultant Dr Lourens de Vries was also involved in ensuring the high standard of the translation. As is the case with many other translation projects in Indonesian Papua, the Kimyal project was a joint effort of the mission, the regional and local churches, the Indonesian Bible Society and UBS, each contributing crucial elements to the translation project.

The Kimyal New Testament was published by the Indonesian Bible Society in March 2010, and was welcomed by the community during a highly emotional celebration in Korupun, West Papua.

The video footage was shot by Dianne Becker.

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Ouch.

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In Old Testament times, during the time of Tabernacle and Temple worship, Yahweh appointed the Tribe of Levi to oversee the worship in the Temple. They were a tribe set apart for the purpose of worshiping God day and night, offering sacrifices, making music, and praying to the Lord. They were to represent God to the World around them, specifically as mediators of God’s blessings, so others can see who He is and join in worship.

Deuteronomy 10:8-9 captures the job description of the Levites:

At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister and to pronounce blessings in his name, as they still do today. That is why the Levites have no share or inheritance among their brothers; the LORD is their inheritance, as the LORD your God told them.

The priests represented God to the people by teaching his Word, giving instruction of worship, blessing them, and rebuking improper worship. Priests also represented the people, or Nation of Israel, to God. This was done through intercessory prayer and burning incense on behalf of the nation, leading worship, bearing the 12 tribes of Israel on their priestly garments, and sacrificing on behalf of the sins of individuals and the Nation as a whole.

1 Peter 2:9 explains the priestly identity for Christians under the New Covenant. The epistle declares that we are “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

In short, we are blessed to be a blessing.

As mediators between God and people, we represent God to people by being conduits of love and grace; we are the body of Christ, so our actions should prove it. We are also charged to teach the Word, bring salvation to the ends of the earth, and bless. We also have the opportunity to represent people to God. We do this by making intercessory prayer, bearing people in God’s presence, and leading people to worship God.

So, how are you carrying out your role as a priest in the Kingdom?

Representing people to God: How often do you plead before the throne of Grace? Are you praying for the healing of the sick.? Are you praying for the unsaved? Are you praying for your pastors and elders?

Representing God to people: You are blessed to be a blessing. How are you blessing others with the truth of the Gospel? Do your words point others to Christ who do not know Him? Do they encourage believers towards holiness and godliness? Are you proclaiming Christ?  What about your actions? Are your actions demonstrating a life transformed by the Gospel? Are you representing God to others well through service and sacrifice?

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