Thoughts on Poverty

Through the course of these past weeks, the topics of the poor and/or poverty have come up in several conversations and my understanding of the subject has expanded and shifted. There is no doubt more to poverty than meets the eye. Most often we think of poverty in terms of material lack. But is that all there is to this brokenness called poverty?

This past week at our Wednesday night gathering at “The House” (Kris, Jeudy and my house) with our  neighbors, Jeudy and Becca shared about their experience on short missions trips to Mexico. They touched on how through connecting with individuals in the communities they visited in Mexico, they saw incredible faith and intense joy in a place one might not expect; in lives gripped by the unyielding hand of material poverty. A place of beautiful reliance on God, when they had nothing else to rely on. Maybe Jesus know what He was talking about when He shared the beatitudes with us…

A second conversation about poverty occurred at our bi-weekly Community Fellows training where we  discussed a chapter out of the book, “When Helping Hurts,” by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert. (I would recommend this book to EVERYONE) The chapter was entitled “What’s the problem?” and included a whole new perspective and definition of poverty. A perspective shared from the material poor themselves. They shared about poverty primarily in terms of, “shame, inferiority, powerlessness,
humiliation, fear, hopelessness, depression, social isolation, and voicelessness.” This starkly contrasted my initial thoughts on poverty and the poor. For them it was less about the physical things they lacked and more about the mental and perspective repercussions of the material lack. This is a HUGE and necessary paradigm shift. I realized that for me, as long as poverty remained cornered in the physical realm, I could ignore the true relational poverty I was dwelling in.

“Poverty is the result of relationships that do not work, that are not just, that are not
for life, that are not harmonious or enjoyable. Poverty is the absence of shalom in all
its meanings”
-Bryant L. Myers

Poverty can look just like me… or you.

Sin is the root, and inceptor of this prideful perspective I so often can have of myself.
I love being self-sufficient and okay--- ALL THE TIME. It is underneath that façade
of collectedness and self-sufficiency that my poverty is exposed. I am really good
at convincing myself I don’t need anybody. This is my brokenness and my struggle.
I was made for community with creation, others and myself, yet I make choices
every day that deepens and widens the chasm between myself and the shalom God
desires.

Thank God for my neighbors, the needs they have exposed in me, and the
opportunity to live in community with them.

I need them.

-Rob VerWys

Community, sorrow and joy

Sometimes the work of community can be a bit of a roller-coaster of emotions...

Last week my friend texted me to let me know he had heard that Kenny, one of our long-time friends who lived on the streets, had passed away.  My heart sank as the reality of this news set in.  Another life claimed by the brokenness of our world.

Kenny and Eric in 2006

Kenny was a good man.  He was quick to smile, to offer me a hug and always ready for a good conversation.  He was one of the first homeless neighbors I met and counted him as a friend.  

I am not sure how he died but I hope he wasn't alone.  I wonder if alcohol, the demon that often stripped him of his freedom eventually caught him and claimed his life.  I also wonder if his story  would have been different if we could have offered him a place to stay while he dealt with the relational poverty that caused his homelessness.  

What if we could have offered him a place to stay...

This week, by contrast, was full of rejoicing.   On Wednesday, I had the great joy and privilege of helping two of our chronically homeless neighbors move from the streets into their own apartments.  

Terry and Kim in his NEW apartment

Kim Barnette and Ricardo Nunez, KCB/OPHS staff members, advocated for these vets over several months, eventually connecting them with housing vouchers.  These two men, who would otherwise be struggling to be warm and safe on the streets, now have places of their own.  Bethany CRC and the Brethren Church of Bellflower stepped up and not only have they committed to help make their new places a homes, they've committed to embracing them and supporting them... COMMUNITY, something WE ALL NEED.

My prayer for them now is that from the safety and warmth of their homes they will be free to engage.  That they will grow in their relationships in community, with God and with themselves.  That's my prayer for you too...  for us all.

Two local churches help 25 homeless families in October: A few of their stories

Bell One

Last month, Bell One and Calvary Church in Bellflower committed $100,000 ($10K from Calvary and $90K from BellOne) in bridge funding to ensure that our homeless prevention work can continue despite funding complications for our grant from the State of California.  This past month, their investment helped us to keep 17 families from becoming homeless and helped move 8 families into housing from the streets.

Here are the stories of a few of those families: 

C.B. – Lakewood Neighbor

The client is 8 months pregnant and her husband has been incarcerated for last 6 months.  She is a single mother of 2 and soon to be 3.  She is part-time employed and receiving government assistance for her children.

The client called at the beginning of October and explained that she was homeless and had spent a night out on the streets with her children.  Her mother took her in for a few weeks until the landlord took notice of the overcrowded unit and warned the client’s mother that she was breaching the lease by having more people than indicated on the lease living in the unit.  The property manager threatened to evict the client’s mother if she didn’t move out.

Calvary Church

With the help of our program, and the churches' investment, she and her children were able to find a unit that she could afford. With her limited income, she didn’t have enough for the move in costs so the program provided the family with the move in assistance and now she and her 2 children are housed in a sustainable environment.  Case Managers are currently working with her to budget for when she has the baby and to help her sustain her place until she is ready to go back to work.  We are estimating this neighbor will need help for about 2-3 months.

O.T. – Lakewood Neighbor

The client is currently caring for her two siblings.  She is working full-time at a phone store and is not earning enough of an income to fully sustain herself and her siblings.  When she enrolled in the program, she had gotten behind on her rent and was on the verge of becoming homeless.  The program has helped her for 3 months and during that time, she found employment that provided higher pay and now her household is sustainable.  She requires no more financial assistance.

K.P – Bellflower Neighbor

Thanks to the help from the churches', the homeless prevention program was able to assist a homeless woman with a home to call her own. This woman became homeless when she was kicked out of her prior residence due to the inability to pay her rent. She was homeless in Bellflower for the past seven months sleeping in her car and showering at friend’s houses when available. Although she works full-time, she was not able to save enough funds to afford the move-in costs for an apartment. With the efforts of both the churches and the homeless prevention program, we were able to house this woman in an apartment in Bellflower. The total move-in costs Security Deposit and first month’s rent came to $1,875. Without the churches’ investment the program would not have been able to finically assist with this woman’s situation. She is now able to have a place to shower, prepare meals and most importantly she mentioned a place to lay her head at night. 

Community Responds to Prayer Requests for Bellflower

Photo courtesy of Diandra Jay/Press Telegram

Last Tuesday we hosted the Mayor's Community Prayer Breakfast.  We had a panel of community experts sharing, from their perspective, how we could pray for our city during the economic downturn.
(From left to right)

• Nichole McGahey, President of Caring Connections, a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the needs of children/families in BUSD, shared about the struggles that local families with school-aged children are experiencing.  She also remarked on the incredible support within our community & school district to help one another.
• Marina Flores, Program Director of Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing through OPHS, shared about the 150 families that have approached their program for help keeping a roof over their heads.
• Mike Egan, City Manager of Bellflower, expressed his deep gratitude for the staff who have remained faithful to serving even though they've had to take big cuts and for the many organizations who have stepped up to take over what the city can no longer afford.  He was transparent in sharing the many financial needs in our city and asked for the people to pray for wisdom for the leaders as they make tough decisions.
• Cristina McConnell, President of the Bellflower Chamber of Commerce, told the crowd about how several business owners are working together to creatively support local businesses in our city.  She also shared about the hard times many local businesses are facing due to people spending less of their paycheck locally.

After the panel shared their prayer requests, four community members led the group of 100 in prayer.

One guest was particularly moved by the stories of local families struggling to make ends meet.  The next morning he dropped off a check for $1000 to Caring Connections to be used toward basic needs for families in our school district.

Click here to read the article written about the breakfast on Press Telegram.

A Homeless Family Needs Your HELP

In early February, a woman reached out for our help. Her husband had just left her and their two daughters and she was forced to move out of their apartment because she could no longer afford the rent. She and her daughters slept in their car for a short time before contacting our Homeless Prevention program in February.

Although the woman works full time, her wages were being garnished because of her eviction so she needed assistance in order to move into a new place. We were able to get her into housing in early March and have been providing minimal rental assistance for the past few months. Our assistance will continue until the garnishments end in July and the family will become completely self-sustaining.

The family is thrilled to be in their own place and off the streets. However, they are still in need of some basic essentials. That's where YOU come in. They have a place, but they don't really have any furniture. Since they don't own a bed or a couch, all three of them sleep on the floor. If you would like to donate a bed, couch, or other household items to this family, please call Kingdom Causes and OPHS at 562.804.2189. It's a very tangible opportunity to love this neighbor who is getting back on her feet.

What do we do?

Today I spent a few hours with a homeless neighbor and her two young kids. We travelled down to Long Beach to see about getting them set up at a longer term shelter.

I wish I could say that throughout the whole process I remained utterly selfless, acting in the Jesus-like way that I'm supposed to. Sadly, I did not. After two hours of trying to entertain energetic preschool boys in a crowded government facility, I was less than chipper. I was concerned about when I was going to get lunch, somehow forgetting that this mom didn't even know if she was going to eat again in the near future.

Despite the imperfections in my attitude, I learned a lot about a piece of society that I don't often interact with. Long lines, endless referrals, dirty conditions, and judgmental attitudes are realities that this mom has to deal with every day. As I sat with her today, the questions kept rolling through my mind, "How can I best help her? What am I supposed to do? Is there any hope at all?".

I wanted to save the world in one afternoon. It's not going to happen. But I can start with being kind, with treating her as my friend and neighbor, rather than my client. I can choose allow my heart to be broken by the poverty of body and soul that I saw today. And I can pray.

What can you do?

How Do We Help?

Thirty people from 10 different congregations attended a training this Saturday on how to help people in crisis. Especially during these hard times, churches are overwhelmed with the need in the community. We discussed different options for how to help and what resources already exist in our area. A theme throughout the morning was the importance of building relationships with the people asking for help and not just giving them a handout and sending them away. It was encouraging to hear God's people conspiring different ways to bless their neighbors.

The church in our city needs to be equipped to help the families that will lose jobs and homes. Being proactive now will better prepare us to be of help and share God's love through our actions in the future.

If you'd like to talk to us about how you can help, email us or give us a call at 562-804-2189.

Neighbor Profile: Jimmy

Each Saturday morning at 6:25 I head out the door to pick up my friend Patrick and bring the towels over to Calvary Church where 30-40 of our homeless neighbors and neighbors in crisis gather weekly for a hot breakfast, warm showers, and some good conversation. It is always a blessing to me to see the regular volunteers and to meet some new neighbors.

This morning I met a man named Jimmy. He hasn't been to a breakfast before so I "cornered" him and I wanted to hear his story. He told me that he lost his job at the local wheel shop after he injured himself on the job in October and is staying with a friend at one of the local trailer parks. He's been living on $75 per week and his roommate notified him that he needs to be out at the end of the month. He'll be homeless in weeks.

In the last few weeks and months we are beginning to see more and more homeless neighbors who don't fit the stereotypes. They are not addicted to drugs or alcohol. They are not mentally ill. They are neighbors who have hit hard times and are dealing with hopelessness and despair. They are neighbors who are ready to hear the gospel if we are ready to demonstrate it.

Please pray with me for Jimmy. Pray that God will heal his back and that he will be able to stay off of the streets.