It's All About Relationships

Early on in the Jobs for Life class, Brandon draws a picture on the board of a person surrounded by a “web” of relationships with God, others, the physical world, and the self. At Advance we believe that poverty happens when sin damages any of these relationships in any of our lives. This means that sin isn’t just sexual immorality or drunkenness; natural disasters, sickness, systems of injustice, and failing schools are all the result of sin. The picture of a person caught in a web of broken relationships reveals the pervasiveness of sin in all our lives.

But it also shows us the pervasiveness of redemption. When Jesus “makes His blessings known far as the curse is found,” He not only heals a person’s relationship with God, He begins to heal that person’s relationships with the physical world (through work!), the person’s own self, and with others. Springs of living water, as Jesus put it, spring up and overflow abundantly into our lives as Christ heals everything that’s sick and restores everything that’s broken.


What does this “big view” of sin and redemption mean for our daily lives? First of all, it reminds us that we’re all broken and in need of Jesus in every area of our lives. And it reminds us that when Jesus gets us right with the Father, He also begins to get us right with others, even and especially those neighbors who are different, who we don’t know, and who we may not even like. It means that reconciliation becomes a crucial part of what it means to be a Jesus follower. Consider this quote from When Helping Hurts:

Our perspective should be less about how we are going to fix the materially poor and more about how we can walk together, asking God to fix both of us.


And this one from Ephesians 2, which speaks about the unexpected reconciliation Christ brought between Jews and Gentiles in the early church:

For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility . . . His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility . . . For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. . . in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

We believe that Christ “has committed to us [this] message of reconciliation” (II Cor. 5:19). And that means that we’re called to engage relationally with people who used to live on the “other side of the tracks of hostility,” too. It means that rich and poor, male and female, black and white MUST find healing in Jesus TOGETHER.


No matter who you are, reconciliation between you and God never happens outside of a relationship. In the same way, racial and socio-economic reconciliation CANNOT happen without real person-to-person relationships. If you don’t have relationships like that, come volunteer at Advance. Staff and volunteers alike can testify to how the relationships built through Advance have helped this gospel of reconciliation flourish in their own lives. Come join us, and let’s experience Christ’s kingdom together.

Michael Rhodes
michael@advancememphis.org

March 5 News

ADVANCE ALUMNA GOES FULL TIME AT MATA We're proud to share that Sharlene Washington, who graduated from the first class ever held at Advance Memphis, has been hired for a full time position at MATA. Sharlene is full time, with benefits. Please pray for Sharlene and her family as she transitions to this new role.

STUDENTS ACCEPTED TO MIDSOUTH COMMUNITY COLLEGE Several students are applying to Mid-South Community College to pursue a Certificate of Proficiency in Chemical Plant Operations and Processes. We're proud of Tonya Harris and Christiana Brown, who have already received acceptance letters. Several of the students of the students who are interested in this program (full scholarships are available) face transportation challenges. Please pray that roadblocks will be removed for those who are ready and willing to pursue education.

PSALM 55: 9-11 9 Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words, for I see violence and strife in the city. 10 Day and night they prowl about on its walls; malice and abuse are within it. 11 Destructive forces are at work in the city; threats and lies never leave its streets.

GRADUATION CELEBRATION Our first class of 2011 graduated last week and our volunteer photographer, Gretchen Shaw, has uploaded pics from the celebration. Slide show below!

First Class of 2011 Graduates

We are so proud of this group of 11 graduates. All of our classes overcome significant roadblocks to reach their graduation, but this group has really worked hard to rise above their struggles and accomplish their goals.

This was also our first graduation to honor grads who have recently received their GEDs. Tonya Harris and Christiana Brown were there (pictured above), and were a great inspiration for today's grads who are still working toward their GEDs.

CED HARRIS BEGINS SAVING FOR CAR

Ced Harris, Jobs for Life grad and UWT Logistics employee, opened his IDA this week to begin saving for a car. We commend Ced's commitment to his job and his family. He'll save $1500 and receive $3000 in matching funds. Watch a video, below, to hear Ced talk about his plan!