Every City consists of typical and distinct social economic layers. Cities are the magnetic centers for people habitations and they attract people of kinds. Within the City we find the rich and powerful, the middle class who are the builders of the economies and the poor who struggle to make ends meet.

Today, we want to see our responsibility to reach out to the poor, marginalized and the excluded.

Observation on Malawi

Malawi is rated amongst the ten poorest nations of the world. About 16 Million of the population live in the rural areas, and therefore most poor people are there. Based on analysis of Poverty using food, non-food and national poverty lines from the Fifth Integrated Household Survey (IHS5-2019/2020) we get some of the following:

• The proportion of population that was poor was 50.8 percent in 2019/2020 (IHS5).
•  56.6 percent of people from rural areas were poor compared to 19.2 percent in urban areas in 2019/2020.
• At regional level, Central region had the highest proportion of population that was poor (55.8 percent) followed by Southern region (51.0 percent) and Northern region (32.9 percent) in 2019/2020
• The level of ultra-poverty in rural areas was 23.6 percent compared to 3.3 percent in urban areas in 2019/2020.
• At regional level, Central region had the highest ultra-poverty rate (25.4 percent) followed by Southern region (19.1 percent) and Northern region (8.6 percent)
•  Inequality was higher in urban areas at 0.390 compared to 0.332 in rural areas in 2019/2020

Isaiah 56:10 His watchmen are blind; they are all without knowledge; they are all silent dogs; they cannot bark, dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber.

Isa 56:11 The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough. But they are shepherds who have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to his own gain, one and all.

This far we have looked the following Metaphors for Serving in the City

1. Watchers who pray for the City
2. Watchers who Speak out when danger strikes

Today we look at the Caring Shepherds

Trait #3: We must Serve the City through Our Ability to Care

Jesus was known for serving the poor, marginalized and the excluded.

Mat_9:10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.

Three Main Roles we can do this

1. We are Shepherds of the City

   • Those who care for the multitudes in the City are likened to Shepherds. Shepherds were (are) persons who care and nurture livestock.
   • The metaphor of Shepherd is used for leaders or ministers who provide leadership service with care and a provision of guidance as the key components.
   • SHEPHERDS of the city demonstrate care, nurture and guide the “flock” (the various people) to their preferred future.
   • We must have people with a good heart to support and care for others in the city.
   • Serving the city demands that our organizations demonstrate care for its various communities.
   • As Shepherds (Ministers) we must lead our organizations in nurturing and caring for communities
2. We are Poverty Alleviators in our City
   • The City is full of challenges that demand caregivers to step up to the tasks of caring.
   • Issues of injustice and poverty are prominent in the cities and the Church therein must be involved in bringing solution to these challenges.
   • Poverty is a human experience.
   • Poverty is a state of being extremely poor where one is destitute and has a hand to hand existence. It is also living a life inferior in quality or insufficient in finances creating a sense of limitedness.
   • Poverty is the scarcity or the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Poverty is a multifaceted reality, which may include cultural, social, economic, and political element. In this message we deal with preliminary understanding of Poverty and God’s views about it.
   • Poverty is a caused reality; to come out of it we must unmask the cause and create solutions.
   • To Christians, the alignment to God’s Word is the key.
   • “The Church in the City should be famous for its ability to care for the urban poor.” Timothy Keller
3. We are Philanthropists of our City
   • Africa depends on donations from outside its boundaries. Its people have trained themselves to expect help from people beyond this continent, from azungu (white People).
   • When a Caucasian person passes through most rural areas of Africa, the people there expect to be given gifts of something, especially, money.
   • Philanthropy is the desire, commitment and ability to promote the welfare of others, through generous donation of money to good causes.
   • Philanthropy has goal of creating impact that leads to transformation.
   • The quality of a society is evaluated in how it treats its weakest people of all types.
   • It is time we Malawians practiced Philanthropy that transforms our communities. We should be change we desire.

Generosity is not optional. Giving Does Not Wait for Perfect Circumstances (2 Cor. 8:2) Giving to the Poor does not wait when the times are perfect.

Prophetic Prayer

1. By the power and grace of God, ICA is increasingly, growing a community that sees themselves as caregivers to the City and I am one of them.
2. I am a poverty alleviator. God has given me power to change circumstances of others and therefore,I am available to minister to people when God provides opportunities
3. I see the Lord increasing my capacity for generosity in Jesus Name

Conclusion

Although the City becomes too big for one person to transform, but when all righteous and courageous people do their part, the Lord sends a revival and healing for the millions found in the city. With consistent efforts of proactive care, the systems and structures of the city undergo powerful reformation.