This is a book recommended years ago by a fellow lover of reconciliation, Kristen Ertel, and I FINALLY picked it up. I am glad I read it now because it has taken on a completely different heart and meaning living in this context. This book is completely true to its subtitle and is an incredible strategy for community development; which is something that has been filling my thoughts lately. I have been praying and soaking up my township community of Ocean View and my heart breaks especially when walking around during the day. People wander, have no place to go and no purpose for their lives. In their boredom and pain they turn to drugs, alcohol, and violence to numb or work out their unexpressed and stuffed emotions. John Perkins is a light in the darkness and speaks from a deep life of experience as he was a major part of the Civil Rights movement and still a voice in the justice movement around the world. Perkins himself grew up in the deep south, became an educated and successful man in California, and then chose to move back to rural Mississippi to make a real change in the hardships of his people. In his ministry he created a three-part strategy of relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution. Perkins and his ministry lived out these principles and were finally able to truly see the Gospel of Jesus come alive and make a difference in the African-American world of the South. This book was wonderfully inspiring and challenging and still has me thinking about my heart to see the Gospel alive in my community. The sacrifices Perkins and his ministry made are striking and show his true belief in God's power to change and free people. He reminds of us this call from Jesus and invites us to answer it as well. I hope I have the courage to listen...
"He told them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'" -Luke 10:2
Overall Grade: A
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