The church of Jesus Christ finds itself at a very unique moment in
history. The average Christian living in the "economically advanced
countries" enjoys a level of prosperity that has been unimaginable for
most of human history. At the same time, over 2.5 billion people in the
Majority World (Africa, Asia, and Latin America) live on less than $2
per day, with many of these people being Christians. Ironically, it is
amongst the "least of these" in the Global South that the global church
is experiencing the most rapid growth.
All of this raises profound challenges to the global church. How can
churches and missionaries in the Majority World effectively address the
devastating poverty both inside their congregations and just outside
their doors? How can churches in the economically advanced countries
effectively partner with Global South churches in this process? The very
integrity of the global church's testimony is at stake, for where God's
people reside, there should be no poverty (Deuteronomy 15:4; Acts 4:34).
For the past several decades, microfinance (MF) and microenterprise
development (MED) have been the leading approaches to poverty
alleviation. MF/MED is a set of interventions that allow households to
better manage their finances and start small businesses. From remote
churches in rural Africa to the short-term missions programs of
mega-churches in the United States, churches and missionaries have taken
the plunge into MF/MED, trying to emulate the apparent success of
large-scale relief and development organizations. Unfortunately, most
churches and missionaries find this to be far more difficult than they
had imagined. Repayment rates on loans are low and churches typically
end up with struggling programs that require ongoing financial
subsidies. Everybody gets hurt in the process: donors, relief and
development agencies, churches and missionaries, and--most
importantly--the poor people themselves.
This book explains the basic principles for successfully utilizing
microfinance in ministry. Drawing on best practice research and their
own pioneering work with the Chalmers Center, Brian Fikkert and Russell
Mask chart a path for churches and missionaries to pursue, a path that
minimizes the risks of harm, relies on local resources, and enables
missionaries and churches to minister in powerful ways to the spiritual
and economic needs of some of the poorest people on the planet.
The insights of microfinance can play a tremendous role in helping to
stabilize poor households, removing them from the brink of disaster and
enabling them to make the changes that are conducive to long-term
progress. Moreover, when combined with evangelism and discipleship, a
church-centered microfinance program can be a powerful tool for holistic
ministry--one that is empowering for the poor and devoid of the
dependencies plaguing most relationships between churches in
economically advanced countries and churches in poor nations.
