Facing the Giant …

“Looking at the bigger picture of poverty in our community can be overwhelming and often paralyzes people.  The fight feels like David standing in front of Goliath, but knowing that the bigger battle of poverty is in God’s hands.  The first thing we need to do is hand it over to our Lord … and recognize that benevolence has to be about partnership and relationship; not about handouts.” ~ Anja Attema ~

Anja Attema, the workshop trainer for DMDs and Deacons, focuses on this during the training, addressing benevolence.

Deacons have the opportunity to provide support and help point people in the right direction, but it all begins with establishing relationships.  As Anja states, “you don’t know what you don’t know”.  When she trains deacons, Anja encourages them to not only ask helpful questions that can reveal some of the root causes of financial burdens but to stress the importance of relationships through their benevolent work.

In order to be successful, Deacons need tools to help address walking alongside their neighbors in benevolence.  DMC, along with conducting these workshops, has developed “Guidelines for Benevolence”.  These guidelines help deacons to create tools for helping, developing plans of action and identifying partners in their community that can provide assistance.

Head over to diacmin.wpengine.com/resources to access these Guidelines and other various tools as well as to access more information/to request information on future Financial Benevolence workshops in your area.

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