Last week my son and I spent three days in Washington, D.C., as part of the Mobilization to End Poverty. We heard challenging speakers. We shared meals and conversations with passionate Christ-followers who are on the front lines to bring biblical justice to their communities, to this nation, and to the world. We spent time lobbying the offices of our elected representatives in the Senate and the House.

The mobilization resulted in some real momentum in the lives of over a thousand of us who gathered in D.C. last week.

But there are many obstacles and barriers that threaten to stop the momentum God accelerated last week. Many of these are necessary and important. Since I was out of the office and away from home for nearly a week, there are many important tasks at hand and may relationships to nurture.

I suspect I am not alone. It is relatively easy to be all-in for fighting poverty when we’re gathering with over a thousand friends on Capitol Hill, but when we return to the realities of our daily lives, sustaining the momentum is no easy task.

Simply put, if we are not intentional, the Mobilization to End Poverty may be little more than a Moment, when what God is calling us to be part of is a Movement.

So what can we do to make sure we mobilized for a Movement, not just a Moment?

Let me suggest that we need to do only one thing: STAY CONNECTED.

A movement, a mobilization, is sustained by relationships. The e-mails, phone calls, one-on-one meetings, and small group gatherings provide the encouragement, the direction, the vision, and the accountability to continue to pray and to act.

First and foremost, stay connected with God. Don’t leave the exciting times of worship, prayer, and reflection behind in D.C. Stay connected to God’s Holy Spirit, who guides and directs all that is worth doing.

Next, don’t forget to stay connected with your friends in your congregation. I’m part of a small group at my church that is going through the Lazarus at the Gate economic discipleship curriculum developed by Boston Faith & Justice. We meet tonight to decide what global economic development organization we are going to support financially… the perfect follow-up to the Mobilization!

Stay connected by joining the struggle for economic justice in your community. Yesterday nearly 50 people in my congregation signed a letter to our local city council encouraging the city to change their policy of never allowing people with past felony convictions to be hired for city jobs. We are joining a movement to provide second chances for rehabilitated ex-felons in our city as a strategy to help end poverty.

Stay connected by forming or joining an organization working for social change in your community. In my city, we are in the process of starting a Faith & Justice network to mobilize the church to address local injustices.

Stay connected nationally and globally. Follow up with your senators and representatives. Continue to stay connected through Sojourners and World Vision. Consider linking up with other national organizations like the Christian Community Development Association or International Justice Mission.

So the question is: How will you stay connected?

After Jesus ascended, the disciples gathered in Jerusalem. They stayed connected with each other. After Pentecost, they gathered regularly in each other’s homes. As the church expanded beyond Jerusalem, they kept connected through letters and missionary journeys. The early church was a connected church.

If the Mobilization to End Poverty is to be a Movement rather than a Moment, we must remain connected. What is your next step?

Troy Jackson is senior pastor of University Christian Church in Cincinnati, a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary, and earned his Ph.D. in United States history from the University of Kentucky. He is author of Becoming King: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Making of a National Leader (Civil Rights and the Struggle for Black Equality in the Twentieth Century) and a participant in Sojourners’ Windchangers grassroots organizing project in Ohio.