Having Nothing, Possessing Everything

Finding Abundant Communities in Unexpected Places

De: Michael Mather

Narrado por: Trevor Thompson

Pastor Mike Mather arrived in Indianapolis thinking that he was going to serve the poor. But after his church’s community lost nine young men to violence in a few short months, Mather came to see that the poor didn’t need his help - he needed theirs.

This is the story of how one church found abundance in a community of material poverty. Viewing people - not programs, finances, or service models - as their most valuable resource moved church members beyond their own walls and out into the streets, where they discovered folks rich in strength, talents, determination, and love.

Mather’s Having Nothing, Possessing Everything will inspire listeners to seek justice in their own local communities and to find abundance and hope all around them.

©2018 Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (P)2020 Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company

An inspiring story of love in action

This is an amazing story of a church that is making a real difference in the community in which it is located. I loved the real-life examples and the way that the 'helpers' valued and listened to their neighbors.

As someone who has studied "Asset-Based Community Development" and similar concepts, this book was a breath of fresh air that showed how these principles can be applied in practical ways in real life. I strongly recommend it to all who are involved in community development or ministry, as well as to students and researchers who want to hear inspiring stories of how these models, when applied with humility and sensitivity, can make a real difference to real people.

The narration worked well and, to be honest, my only disappointment with this book was that it isn't longer!

Must-Read for services & Non-Profits

Such an important perspective for us all to understand, and infuse into our relationships. A dramatic learning for our “giving,” charity, non-profits, social services and low-income housing. And For how we “serve” our Senior population.

Story filled reimagining of ministry

I have read many books on 'urban ministry' or community development.  I have a master's degree in social service administration, and my job is non-profit consulting. Having Nothing, Possessing Everything is not a unique take, but it is well told. In an overly simplified form, this is a church that has taken the Asset Based Community Development model (look to develop the strengths of the community more than bringing in resources to address the weaknesses.) I broadly support the ABCD model, but it is not simple to implement well (or easily replicable), and some use the model as an excuse not to address systemic issues or immediate needs.

I think the story focus of Having Nothing, Possessing Everything does an excellent job of exploring what is and is not meant here. Mather takes on traditional social ministry, unconstrained capitalism, consumerism, and the lack of resources in a helpful way. I wish he dealt more directly with race, although it is in the background throughout the book.

At the end of the book, there is an exploration of a set of six principles that I think are helpful. They are the principle that guides both how partnerships work and the ideals of the church

Our neighbors are God's people. Act like it
Everything begins with and builds on the gifts of our neighbors.
Parents and guardians are the first and best teachers. Respect this.
We invest first and foremost in the good the people of the neighborhood seek.
Money must flow into the neighborhood.
Practice neighbor love.

As part of fulfilling the six principles, the church stopped tracking standard goals and started 'gamifying' their targets. (You can read more about this in the quote toward the bottom of this page). The following quote is an example of how the team received points:

"Count the number of times you ate with someone and reminded them during the meal of the communion that Jesus shared with his friends on Maundy Thursday and of Christ’s presence at their table. Count the number of times you went and offered forgiveness to someone who was laboring under guilt and shame. Count the number of times you threw a party to celebrate the presence and power of God’s love in the people and parish around you. Count the number of times you took your Bible and read a story to someone whose life you see in that particular story. Count the number of times you posted on Facebook celebrating in concrete and joyful ways the discipleship/vocation of the people in your parish."

Throughout the book, Mather mostly told stories of other people. He illustrated how he learned, but the success stories mainly were of others. This isn't only an excellent method, it appears to be essential to actually how the church has had success. Michael Mather was the pastor, but without a partner who primarily worked in the community and made personal connections and listened to people's stories and helped discern gifts and skills around the church, Mather's ability to pastor and get funding, and tell stories would have been worthless. Because it is in hearing stories and building relationships where this type of work matters. And where the church ministry understands most deeply was in how they did not orient the relationships around them (you relate to me, and I relate to this other person), they sought ways to facilitate involvement and connection outside of themselves.

Where I do lament a bit is that many people are doing similar work, but the stories told publicly, and the books published are still mostly done by old White guys. Mather certainly has put in his time and faithfully done ministry. But as he points out, most of that ministry wasn't done by him or thought up by him. Mather was slower to learn than many of those around him that were teaching him. But he still was the one that published the book and told the stories. He is undoubtedly skilled at telling them, but the reality of the world is market forces and a lot of unstated assumptions impact who tells stories. And we do not hear all of the stories that should be told, and in many cases, some of the good stories like this may point to others, or they may inoculate readers from hearing better, more representative stories.

Inspiring ideas for urban ministry

This pastor has learned so much in his years of living and working in inner cities. Now, as a seasoned pastor, he shares that knowledge and real stories of hope and change in this inspirational narrative. He is not condescending to those who may have done ministry (especially in an urban setting) a different way from his, but he does encourage you to take another look at how and why you do ministry the way you do. And he would challenge you to consider if there is another, unique or effective way which might yield better results.

A must-read for people in the social sector

Having Nothing, Possessing Everything, by Michael Mather (Audible Audio Book). Published 2018. [NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.] This book is part of the Christian literature genre, but it’s message goes far beyond any particular faith. The author writes of his experiences in low income communities, and rather than searching for and addressing the needs of those residents, he and his parishioners looked for the assets of the individuals who are, more often than not, considered (and treated as) recipients of services. This is a perspective promoted most famously by John L.McKnight and John P. Kretzmann in the 1990s. In this instance, it appears Pastor Mather came upon the idea of looking for community strengths rather than weaknesses through his own work and that of others in the neighbors in which his two parishes were situated. In short, instead of deciding what each community needed — the traditional nonprofit and government approach — his churches began refusing to throw money at problems, at least directly. Instead, they established personal relationships with individuals and families, and through conversation and small family-oriented meetings, discovered the skills, talents, dreams, and wishes of specific people. When those were revealed, his church supported them in various ways. Bakers, cooks, artists, tutors and others with skills were identified and sometimes hired to provide their services, often jumpstarting small businesses. If a parishioner came to them with a request for money the answer was “no.” If the requester didn’t immediately leave, s/he was engaged in a conversation about what were his/her strengths and talents. When they identified what they could do, what they could teach or otherwise share with others, they were supported. They even got to the point where staff would be fired if they tried to directly help parishioners in the traditional ways: giving them money. This entire story is, naturally, framed within a strong Christian sensibility, but it’s message applies to anyone and anywhere. Discovering what people can do, and supporting them, has the potential to revitalize communities, often in areas where traditional service programs fail. When people are successful and see the success of those close to them, learn problem solving skills, and refuse to see themselves in negative ways often perpetuated by well-meaning but ineffectual service providers, they can revitalize their own neighbors in ways others can’t. A weakness of this otherwise very good book is the lack of examples showing where they failed with this ‘new’ approach and how they dealt with those poor outcomes. I would have liked to hear from others within the author’s churches who supported this fairly radical approach to social services. Without those stories, it comes across as a universally successful program, which seems highly unlikely. Regardless, I highly recommend this book to people in the large service provider sector. At a minimum it is thought-provoking and at best could be life-changing. [By the way, this is the third audio book I’ve listened to narrated by Trevor Thompson. He is so good that I’d be tempted to listen to him reading an audio book version of a dictionary.]

A thought provoking read

I wasn't sure if I'd like the book from the introduction. There were vague platitudes about the "strength" and "beauty" of people in need, etc. But as the book continued and the author began to give practical advice based on numerous experiences to support his claim that ministry to the "needy" should be based on nurturing their gifts rather than meeting what we think their needs are, it quickly became a book that was hard to put down. If you are involved in any kind of ministry or work which addresses people in need, you should read this.

A Challenging message to give it ALL away for something better!

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

A challenging message for our materialist instant gratification times. The embrace of this message will change your life - no doubt! Your gain will be a treasure you will not find any other way.

Inspirational and practical

Must read for anyone wanting to see change in your communities and the people in them.

Misread words

The narrator missaid several words during his narration. I realized this because I read along with the audio.