There are plenty of challenges in Guyana—there is no potable water source other than expensive bottled water, their city infrastructure is tenuous at best and poverty is everywhere. To my American eyes, I saw tragedy all around me… hardly the place where I would expect hope and faith to flourish. The people of Guyana surprised me and taught me about how, even in the absence of what we as Americans take for granted, valuable ministry can and does happen.
Walter Brueggemann, Old Testament scholar, says that a theology of scarcity says there’s not enough food, water, housing, etc., so hold on to what you have, hoarding it if you must. A theology of abundance says you always have “enough” so it’s easy to give some of it away.
The president of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana said that most members live on less than $200 US dollars per month. With that money, they support Sunday school curricula, feeding programs for children and the homeless, and provide leadership training for lay people.
Perhaps we in the United States need the lesson in abundance from those who seemingly have so very little.
This message is excerpted from “Scarcity or abundance” by Jennifer Michael from the January 30, 2014, blog of the Women of the ELCA. Today is the Third Sunday in Lent. Today is the Women of the ELCA Bold Women’s Day.
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