Created by foreign Missions during the British Raj, the small Christian community in the Pakistan area has existed for nearly one hundred and fifty years. Due to its low socio-economic and elemental religious background, it has always suffered from an image problem. Under the British Raj, the security and well-being of this community was assured to a very large degree. But with the establishment of Pakistan-a constitutionally Islamic state and society-the circumstances of this small minority ...

A dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery.An upscale art dealer accustomed to the worldof Armani and Chanel.A gutsy woman with a stubborn dream.A story so incredible no novelist would dare dream it.It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana. . . and a...

Veteran urban activist Robert Lupton reveals the shockingly toxic effects that modern charity has upon the very people meant to benefit from it. Toxic Charity provides proven new models for charitable groups who want to help—not sabotage—those whom they desire to serve. Lupton, the founder of FCS Urban Ministries (Focused Community Strategies) in Atlanta, the voice of the Urban Perspectives newsletter, and the author of Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life, has been...

Some of us fear moments when we need to defend our theology. Some of us seek them out. But we are seldom ready the way Jesus seemed to be ready. So how do we draw others to God in the midst of these ordinary conversations the way Jesus did?In Speaking of Jesus, Carl Medearis draws on his experience of international reconciliation between Muslims and Christians to remind us of the heart of the matter: Jesus. Here he gives us tools, stories, and the foundation we need to mov...

"It can be fashionable to talk about the poor but not as fashionable to talk to the poor. It may be popular to talk about justice and still not know any victims of injustice. But we will never make poverty history until we make poverty personal. Eugene Cho shatters all our hipster coffee-shop talk of justice and dares you to dive into the trenches and do something real with your life."Shane Claiborne, author, activist, and friend of Eugene Cho"A gutsy and gr...

**Paradise is a garden. . .but heaven is a city.From the acclaimed author of Take This Bread and Jesus Freak comes a powerful new account of venturing beyond the borders of religion into the unpredictable territory of faith.**On Ash Wednesday, 2012, Sara Miles and her friends left their church buildings and carried ashes to the buzzing city streets: the crowded dollar stores, beauty shops, hospital waiting rooms, street corners and fast-food joints of her ...

In the dark corners of the inner city, the most destitute people in society are searching for anything to numb their hurting souls. And there are some who display the most extreme mix of need and anticipation: the twenty-piece shuffle, a jittery walk marked by wide-eyed desperation, named after the street tag for a piece of crack cocaine.But the addiction to whatever will numb a troubled spirit is not confined to the streets. Suffering is not bound by social class, and pain is not ...

Good intentions are not enough.When Helping Hurts offers a different framework for thinking about poverty and its alleviation. Rather than simply defining it as a lack of material things, the book addresses the roots of the issue: broken relationships with God, self, others, and the rest of creation. Online videos included.Join together as a class or small group to explore how to help the poor without hurting them.The S...

In Bible times, God maintained a special provision for the less fortunate. As His people harvested their fields, they were instructed to always leave a portion of the crops for those in need. Today, God's heart continues to beat for the poor, the widows, and the fatherless. And as His children, our divine commission remains the same, a directive that's nothing less than the heart of the Christian message.Author Tom Davis encourages us to move beyond words and become Christ to those...

The veteran urban activist and author of the revolutionary Toxic Charity returns with a headline-making book that offers proven, results-oriented ideas for transforming our system of giving.In Toxic Charity, Robert D. Lupton revealed the truth about modern charity programs meant to help the poor and disenfranchised. While charity makes donors feel better, he argued, it often hurts those it seeks to help. At the forefront of this burgeoning yet ineffective compassi...

Many a Westerner has had a cross-cultural experience of honor and shame. First there are those stuttering moments in the new social landscape. Then after missed cues and social bruises comes the revelation that this culture—indeed much of the world—runs on an honor-shame operating system. When Western individualism and its introspective conscience fails to engage cultural gears, how can we shift and navigate this alternate code? And might we even learn to see and speak the gospel different...

Chasing God is Roger Huang's gritty, heartfelt story of obedience to God's call to follow Him into the heart of the city. That mission can inspire you!Leaving behind his abusive home in Taiwan, Roger discovered both the American Dream and his French bride, Maite. A dramatic event took place before his very eyes and prompted Roger to rethink his future and his calling. As a couple, Roger and Maite chose not to ignore the plight of the poor ...