Chalmers Center

Welcome back to Rethink Poverty. This week, I'm interviewing the people who run Kingdom Partners. We have churches on almost every corner, but most of the time they stay disconnected. Oliver Richmond wants to change that. He leads Kingdom Partners, a non-profit working to bring church leaders together to serve their community. Today we discuss the vision and mission of Kingdom Partners and how they’ve had to shift their ministry during this pandemic. In this interview, I discuss Kingdom Partners with Oliver Richmond, Jefferson Herring, and Alfred Johnson. You can contact Kingdom Partners by checking out their website at kingpartners.org

What’s the best way to help people who are poor? We can talk about techniques, but the truth is we need more than that. To really help people, we have to take a look at the stories that we tell ourselves. The stories we believe about what success really looks like, both for you and the people you are trying to help. My guest today is Brian Fikkert, co-author of When Helping Hurts. In his latest book, Becoming Whole, Brian explores the importance of stories and how they shape our work with people in poverty. He’s here to share some of the lessons that he and others have learned along the way. We discussed two books in the episode, Becoming Whole which describes how we can break free from the lie of the American dream and redefine success for you and the people you are trying to help. The Field Guide to Becoming Whole dives into the 5 themes of poverty alleviation and provides practical examples of how others are helping people in their local context. You can find more info on Becoming Whole and A Field Guide to Becoming Whole at Becomingwholebook.com

Michael Rhodes has a P.HD in Theology from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. He is also the Director of Community Transformation at the Memphis Center for Urban Theological Studies, where he works to equip pastors and community development leaders with theologically informed tools for community transformation. He is also the co-author of Practicing the King’s Economy. A book to help people honor Jesus in how you work, earn spend, save and give. You can find Michael Rhodes on twitter at @michaeljrhodes. In this episode, we mention Practicing the King’s Economy. This book is an incredibly helpful tool for Christians desiring to live a countercultural life for the common good, especially as it relates to their money and resources. Michael Rhodes, Robby Holt, and Brian Fikkert wrote this book to help people honor Jesus in how you work, earn spend, save and give.

When most people think about startups and entrepreneurship, the local church doesn't necessarily come to mind. For this episode, We wanted to feature 3 talks that explore how the local church can become a catalyst for starting local businesses and creating social impact within the community. This discussion is sponsored the Chalmers Center and the Chattanooga Institute for Faith & Work. Stu Minshew is the Vice President of Innovation Operations at the Chalmers Center. Stu received his masters of business administration from the Georgia Institute of Technology with a focus on Strategy, Entrepreneurship, and Organizational Behavior. Over his career, he has started 4 businesses, trained cross-cultural teams, and led consulting and training projects for over 10,000 professionals. Philip Roundy is an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at the UTC College of Business. He received his Ph.D. in corporate strategy from UT Austin. His research focuses on understanding how entrepreneurship can be used as a tool for economic and community revitalization. Through his research and consulting, he has interviewed and worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs and investors across North America. Jose is the director of growth at Co Starters, where he works to build strong and sustainable business models. He is an experienced operations director who has successfully scaled organizations in the community development and hospitality industries. Discover a biblical framework for helping people in poverty! Through our new online course HWH the basics, you’ll learn how to walk with the poor in humble relationships instead of providing temporary handouts. Learn more at http://hwhthebasics.com

Trauma can affect people in different ways. For people experiencing poverty, trauma can affect decision making, emotional regulation, and more. Suzanne Burns coaches ministry leaders to understand the effects of trauma, addiction through her ministry BeCharityWise. Suzanne has a Masters of Science in Marriage and Family Studies from Lee University, Cleveland, TN. She is also a Certified Family Trauma Professional. For more information on Suzanne and her work at Foundation House Ministries, you can learn more at foundationhouseministries.org. To learn more about her trauma-informed ministry training go to Becharitywise.com Check out our new resource A Field Guide to Becoming Whole. Brian Fikkert's latest book offers a simple framework of principles for effective poverty alleviation that you can put into practice where you are. Learn more at Becomingwholebook/fieldguide

Can churches build relationships with people inside prison walls? Brenda McGowan believes it is possible! She began her career in criminal justice reform in 2006 while serving as advisory council chairperson for St. Joseph County Prison Reentry Initiative. Brenda currently serves as Vice President of programming at Crossroads Prison Fellowship. She has a passion for building collaborative, strong and nurturing communities both inside and outside prison walls.

All over the world, people are proclaiming the good news among the poor. They’re taking a stand and living out the Kingdom of God in their neighborhoods. Alan Murdock is one of these people. He and his wife Michelle started Project Connect Nashville to bring hope to the hurting community of Madison, TN. They help people “get out and stay out” of poverty through relationships and connections with local churches. Check out our new Faith & Finances online training course available for churches and non-profits. Go to Chalmers.org/finances.

American media and culture invest daily in fomenting division between rural and urban dwellers. Yet when two leaders from these communities view their lives through a holistic Gospel lens, they find more in common than the mainstream narrative would have us believe. Join Pastor Alton Hardy, the son of sharecroppers now working in an urban neighborhood, Chris Horne, the son of a single mother from the deep South now serving in rural Appalachia, and moderators K.A. Ellis and Justin Lonas, as they talk fatherhood, marriage, discipleship, death, and hope in Christ. More in Common is a joint venture between the Chalmers Center and the Center for the Study of the Bible and Ethnicity at Reformed Theological Seminary, Atlanta. This event was recorded on May 7, 2019 as part of Theology on Tap Chattanooga hosted by the Camp House.

Viki Conn is the director of Love Inc in greater Holmes County Ohio. Love Inc is a national network of 137 affiliated that connect local churches and mobilizes them to transform lives and communities.

Poverty is one of the biggest problems facing our world today. The Chalmers Center Podcast is a monthly podcast featuring inspiring stories from people, churches, and nonprofits who are involved in poverty alleviation. In this episode, we interviewed Brian Fikkert about his latest book, Becoming Whole.