Summary

Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert of the Chalmers Center, the authors of When Helping Hurts, wrote this guide with Katie Casselberry to apply that book’s framework to church benevolence work. It pushes churches to diagnose the causes of a person’s poverty rather than treat symptoms, and to put a benevolence philosophy and policy in writing before the next request arrives.

Widely used by deacons and benevolence teams.

Excerpt

Good intentions are not enough. If we misdiagnose the causes of their poverty or treat their symptoms rather than their underlying problems, we can do considerable harm to materially poor people in the very process of trying to help them. We have to get the diagnosis right.

Excerpt

If your church does not take the time to develop a philosophy and policy document, your benevolence ministry will lack the compass it needs to keep moving in the right direction.

Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence: A Practical Guide to Walking with Low-Income People

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