I have been reflecting on the importance of the regular practice of thankfulness. Not only is thankfulness the right and fitting response to God for His great love and grace, but also, from Deuteronomy 8, we see that thankfulness is like a builder's level or plumb line. "When you have eaten your fill, be sure to praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. But that is the time to be careful! Beware that in your plenty you do not forget the Lord your God and disobey his commands, regulations, and decrees that I am giving you today." Deuteronomy 8:10,11 (NLT)
Thankfulness keeps us from putting the focus on ourselves or on the blessing and directs our focus squarely to God, the source of life and blessing.
I am thankful to God not only that I have the privilege of doing this work and playing a part in the great work of ending extreme poverty, but also that I get to do it with people like you! You — our donors, prayer partners, cheering section, and friends — make the work a joy. For you, I am most thankful.
This month, we reflect on the spiritual foundations of our work. Enjoy!
In focus:Reflecting on our Christian identity and what we do
Looking at World Vision’s work from a distance, some might conclude that the most important parts of what we do are external, physical, and tangible. These include helping people build improved and resilient livelihoods, equipping communities with access to clean water, supporting improved access to quality education or healthcare, providing nutrition training and support, and responding to emergencies and disasters. After all, these are practical, immediate, and greatly needed.
While critically important, it would be a enormous mistake to conclude that the journey of transformation stands or falls solely by the physical, economic, social, or material components of our work. After all, what is the value of bringing great economic empowerment tools to individuals who do not believe they can take initiative to improve their lives? Is it enough to bring clean water to a family if the home remains a place of conflict and grief? Should we think of ourselves as the main actor in a community’s education or health transformation when churches and faith actors can be effective agents of transformation?
Wrestling with some of the world’s deepest hurts, we consistently see common themes and questions emerge among the people we serve.
Who am I, do I matter, and does God care about my living situation?
How can I have a family life that is loving, uplifting, supporting and nurturing? Does God care about my role as a husband and a father or as a wife and a mother?
Does my church have a role in helping our community address real issues, problems, and concerns?
How we answer those 3 questions shows our conviction that our Christian faith not only drives why and how we do our work, but also what we do and communicate. That is, what information, perspective, worldview, and values do we share with the people, families, and communities we serve?
We have created and are widely using a set of biblically based tools that are extraordinarily effective in addressing the hearts and minds of individuals, families, and communities in ways that ONLY God can do. These tools:
Help individuals move from hopelessness to empowerment and from despair to hope Through the Biblical Empowered Worldview curriculum, individuals and families are coming to understand that they are image bearers of God and have the capacity to be productive, creative, and responsible. They are created by God to provide well for themselves, their families, and their communities. They are called to care for the less fortunate, for the hurting, and for creation. Lastly, they are made for healthy and flourishing relationships and called to courageously become all that God intends them to be.
Help families become havens of mutual support and love Through Celebrating Families, we help parents and caregivers see and understand how sharing decisions and empowering individual gifting allows the family to flourish and prosper, and to understand biblical approaches to raising children with love, tenderness, and care.
Help churches become beacons of light and hope for their communities Through Channels of Hope, church and other faith leaders are being equipped to address the critical issues behind the root causes of extreme poverty and injustice and become active participants of transformational community change.
We use these tools derived from our faith and our scriptures not as ornamental niceties in our work, but rather believing that our Christian faith and distinctives are critically important to the journey of transformation. We believe that transformational development will only fully and completely take place as people realize their God-given potential as individuals, as families prosper and flourish in all dimensions, and as churches and faith-based groups exercise their gifts and power in helping to make lasting change in community priorities, structures, and policies.
Join fellow Economic Empowerment "investors" for two days of critical updates, in-person reports from local programs, and talking through challenges — and developments — of rolling out our THRIVE 2030 Business Plan. Be inspired as you hear directly from senior World Vision leaders, our implementing team, our partners, and the people we serve together. This will be an informative and engaging experience, filled with fellowship and fun. And we will enjoy the beauty of the Pacific Northwest at its best!
To partner with us
Give to the Economic Empowerment Global Fund: THRIVE 2030 to help us reach 10 million people in 11 countries with the tools they need to lift themselves out of extreme poverty. Tools include Biblical Empowered Worldview, savings groups, market knowledge and access, and "Lending to Savings Groups" (i.e., FAST loans).
Give praise that THRIVE farmers in Tanzania — visited by some of our donors in September — have remained resilient to the effects of the just-ended multi-year drought. Cash savings, crop diversification, and focusing agriculture on capturing and using water efficiently are effective tools for building resilience. This sharply contrasted with communities that have not yet started with THRIVE 2030.
Give praise for the 20th anniversary of the founding of our microfinance subsidiary, VisionFund International, which has made over 20 million loans with a value of $11.4 billion.
Pray for the THRIVE 2030 implementation teams who are now rolling out the foundational components of the business plan — both the Biblical Empowered Worldview training and organizing people into savings groups. Pray for God’s leading and blessing of these foundational steps.
Pray for effective short-term responses and long-term adaptation measures in Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Tanzania;while the drought in the Horn of Africa is over, the rains have resulted in severe flooding leading us to declare an emergency response in Somalia.
Thank you for your faithful partnership!
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