A Moment or a Movement? Sustaining Momentum after the Mobilization to End Poverty

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.

Related Reading

• What's Next for Jubilee USA?
  by Eric LeCompte
• Jubilee and Beyond
  by Elaine Storkey
• New and Noteworthy
  by Julie Polter
• What Next for the Occupiers?
  by Bill McKibben
• A Life of Spiritual Adventure
  by Rosalie Riegle

Take Action on This Issue

Tell the Senate: Don't Cut International Aid

Please join us in telling the Senate: Protect foreign aid programs that help the poor and the needy. 

• +Take Action
• +Tell A Friend

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