Having Nothing, Possessing Everything : Finding Abundant Communities in Unexpected Places

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 com-munity 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 readers to seek justice in their own local communities and to find abundance and hope all around them.

Michael Mather is pastor of the First United Methodist Church of Boulder, Colorado. As a preacher-consultant- storyteller, he speaks all over the country about community development and urban ministry.