A Field Guide to Becoming Whole: Principles for Poverty Alleviation Ministries

This is not a how-to manual… (it’s a field guide)

We all want to know, "How can I help without hurting in this specific situation?" But there’s no one answer, and there’s definitely no short cuts, but there are key principles—or ministry design principles.

Think of these like the rules an improvising actor learns—the principles are crucial—but the actor must decide how to put them into practice based on the complexities of the situation.

This book contains and explicates 20 ministry design principles developed over decades of observing, studying, and experimenting. They’re in no way perfect, but they represent the very best ideas we have to date for how to do effective poverty alleviation in the kingdom of God.

• Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence: A Practical Guide to Walking with Low-Income People
• From Dependence to Dignity: How to Alleviate Poverty through Church-Centered Microfinance
• When Helping Hurts: The Small Group Experience: An Online Video-Based Study on Alleviating Poverty
• To Live in Peace: Biblical Faith and the Changing Inner City
• Practicing the King's Economy: Honoring Jesus in How We Work, Earn, Spend, Save, and Give
• Toxic Charity: How Churches and Charities Hurt Those They Help, And How to Reverse It
• Our America: Life and Death on the South Side of Chicago
• Becoming Whole: Why the Opposite of Poverty Isn't the American Dream
• When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself
• Walking with the Poor: Principles and Practices of Transformational Development