Is Government Responsible for the Increase in Poverty?

Many people think the causes of the terrible increase in poverty, homeless and violence can be found in Washington D.C. Although I do not agree that government is totally responsible, in my view, the policies of DC have made the situation worse, much worse!

Watch the enclosed video of a seminar we did several years ago and see what you think. In it we lay out correlations of several human foibles that are linked directly to poverty. After watching, tell me what you think government policies have to do with the problems we lay out.

I'm From the Government and I am here to helpYou

In my youth a comedian named Brother Dave was famous for a skit about Federal Government "Help". During the Depression, many people planted gardens in order to survive. One day a man in a black suit driving a new Ford drove up to  a farm and said to the sweating farmer, "I'm from the Government and I am here to help you".

The hard working farmer asked, "Great! I need help. What can you do for me?"

The Federal man said, "Plow that garden up!"

That is still going on. Beware anyone bearing free gifts, especially if they are from DC. They always make it worse.

Taking advice from a Government Bureaucrat about fixing poverty is like taking marital advice form a teenage girl. All emotion and no wisdom or experience.

How to Help the Poor

The Pope has said many great things that we as Christians can support.

1. He is focusing on leading with Love not The Law.
2. Leading with Love is biblical. Leading with the Law is not.
3. His message is good and true but incomplete. To implement what he says as an institution or church we must also develop infrastructures that prepare care givers for the poor and ways to help them leave poverty thinking behind.

If you want to love the poor and destitute as well as the sick and traumatized masses I will support your efforts and assist you in developing systems that deliver them from their pain.

Get my books from our web store and from Amazon. They do more than preach a big picture of love and acceptance. they teach how to impact people for generations.

Go here for materials. 

Work with the Poor and Disenfranchised

I grew up in a poor home and know the limitations of poverty. Thankfully we were not part of the generational poverty we see now so we worked hard, saved our money and got an education.

Many young people are stuck in a system that promotes generational poverty. That is tragic and we need to put our best thinking caps on to figure out ways to help people break that cycle.

Breaking any generational cycle is difficult because all of us are like the fish of the sea. We swim in whatever water we grow up in. To suggest that fresh water is better than salt water sounds irrational and impossible. Poor people have poor ways, my dad always said. They grow up in poverty with a lack of education, poor habits, overspending, etc because that is what they know.

But poor people can change. They can develop positive, healthy patterns if they get a chance. DOHN Community Recovery School in Cincinnati is giving high school students an opportunity to learn new habits and thrive in a school that supports them in their struggle.

Healthy Visions, Inc., led by Carole Adlard received a grant from the state to prepare 25 Mentors to volunteer to go into the school and support 25 students as they study, learn and discover ways to prosper. I spent the day with those Mentor Trainees today going over the keys to building a successful relationship with those young men and women.

Can you support us in our effort? See more here.

The Pope has been preaching compassion and service to the poor during his visit and I agree that it is necessary for us Christians to do what we can to help them break the cycle of poverty.

Thanks for your prayers and support.

What Do We Do to Heal the Heart?

I stated last time that the foundation of brokenness in life can be summarized as Four Factors. I almost bought a house one time that had a crooked foundation. We knew something was wrong because there were cracks in the wall and some floors were not quite level.

The salesman attempted to assure me that they were only surface problems that could be fixed simply with a little paint and carpentry. However, I had a carpenter look it over. He knew about the importance of a solid foundation and he spotted the real issues quickly.

 "The foundation is broken and the entire house is sinking on one side. It can only be fixed by a major construction project that completely replaces the foundation."

Many writers that focus on human issues fail to deal with foundational brokenness. A little paint will not fix it. Shame is not a surface problem caused by being teased or bullied. The fear of transparency comes from shame not the other way around. The answers suggested to get rid us of shame are things like, "Stop bullying" or "Give everyone a trophy even if they fail" or "Just start being transparent".

If the problems are foundational, it will take a deeper and more basic answer. Who fixes foundations?

Get the book The Healing Release of the Holy Spirit to understand the foundational issues.

One of My Books on Amazon

My very competent co-worker, Andrea, has been able to wade through my book on renewing the mind and get it on Amazon.com. It is an E Book title Power Christian Thinking, and you can download it on a PDF and read it on any computer.

Just put my name in Amazon.com and my books will come up. Some are old versions I wrote years ago and the materials are still valid but Power Christian Thinking is up to date and ready to help people Take Every Though Captive to Christ's Love.

Here is the page on Amazon.com 

Bene Brown and Other Experts Point out Human Pain

The Vicious Cycle of Poverty illustrates how "The Four Factors of Human Frailty" bring cause from generation to generation.

If you have ever heard Bene Brown speak or read her materials you will probably decide she is not only a great communicator but an insightful professional. I am not expert on her ideas but what I see I like.

My main problem with most of the presentations about Guilt and Shame from Bene and others is missing some thing. Like most people who write from a humanistic, non-theistic point of view, they start with current human frailties. To them,   individuals and families cause the Guilt and Shame Feelings we all have.

My professors nor current writers have insights into the pain and shame fail to look at the "First Cause" of Guilt and Shame.  In fact, they rarely discuss root causes but focus on symptoms rather than causes. Why do so many people act in ways that harm others and cause so much Guilt and Shame?

Let me say here that emotional, relational and mental problems, in every culture, society, religion and psychological experience can be boiled down to four basic issues.

1. Deep Brokenness of mind, body, spirit and relationships that cause unstoppable imperfections. Bondage/Disease

2. A lack of Identity about "Who we are in this huge universe".
Shame or Loss of Person hood

3. Patterns, habits and behaviors that hurt ourselves and others. Pride or Rebellion

4. A sense of failure and remorse about our lack of perfection. Guilt or Conviction

These are the root causes of all harmful behavior and the resulting emotional problems in life. If every human is tempted to behave in harmful ways, then every human being is harmed while on earth.

Why is every person on the planet beset by temptations to cause harm and thus be harmed by others? These are the root causes and there must be ways to deal with them. No model that fails to identify the roots and then align the answers to those root causes will be like a man that blows the seeds off a dandelion but never digs out the roots.

My book, The Healing Release of the Holy Spirit offers my explanations. See what you think. It might blow your mind.