I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
With a distinctive Canadian flare, author Kevin Wiebe, tackles the topic of Christian charity amidst poverty. His Anabaptist background and ministerial employment lead his work on how to live as a believer in Christ with generosity when you don't have much in the way of material things. Highly informative. Much to think about as a reader. He makes many references to the statements and thoughts of other writers and leaders. Topics of charity and charitable organizations, God complex style helping, spiritual poverty and tangible methods to be generous with what you have. Good book.

A quick look around is all it takes to see people in need. Our attention may go to the homeless in our area, or to other countries that don’t have the amenities that most people in our country do. Maybe we don’t have the capability to give money so we just feel for them. However, we might be looking at the whole situation in the wrong way.

In Faithful in Small Things, Kevin Wiebe presents some ideas that can seem strange at first, but then really make sense. How are you supposed to help people in need when you don’t have any extra money yourself? He shares stories about times his family and friends were able to help others, even when money was tight. He also explains that lack of money is not the only type of poverty that people experience.

Along the way, he gives gentle instruction to remember that people in need are not less worthy, and that helping them doesn’t make you any better than another person. We need to keep in mind that everyone is created in God’s image and is worthy of love.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

According to a recent CNBC poll, nearly 2/3rd (63%) of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck. More people than ever need financial help and fewer people than ever seem to be in a position to help. Many have turned inward, able to focus only on caring for themselves, and forced to ignore the many people who could use a bit of help. But what if that feeling of helplessness is only because we haven’t truly understood how to help our neighbor? What if there were ways of serving those in need while being a person in need? You can, and that’s the premise of Faithful in Small Things by Kevin Wiebe.

Kevin is the pastor of New Life Christian Fellowship in Ontario, Canada. I first ran across him when he published a small group series called Pov.Ology, a six-week video series about poverty, theology, and the church. It was an eye-opening experience for my mostly upper-middle-class high school youth group. Faithful in Small Things shows that this interest in poverty alleviation and advocating for the poor is more than a passing interest but a core piece of Wiebe’s ministry.

Faithful in Small Things is written to the average person, just getting by or struggling, living in a society where public adulation for giving goes to those who have the most and give the most. When society tells you that your contributions can only be meager and that meager contributions are not valuable, it can quite quickly become disillusioning to even try to give. Western society is set up in a way that honors, in focused on, and runs through big givers. Wiebe counters that philosophy in his book, using personal anecdotes and thoughtful strategies to show how those in need can use what they have to help others in need and how that model of mutual giving builds the kind of community the early church envisioned.

Wiebe divides the book into four parts, with the first two dealing with understanding poverty biblically and sociologically and the second two dealing with poverty alleviation. In an era of health-and-wealth prosperity Gospel teaching, much of what Christian culture implicitly thinks about poverty and wealth is, frankly, flat-out wrong. Wiebe is able to take readers on a well-structured introduction to the underlying causes of poverty and highlighting the human element.

The strongest exhortation in the book is the simple truth that poverty alleviation works best when it comes from the community. When the poor are able to create community, advocate for themselves, and lead their own movements against economic injustice, it is more effective. This relational aspect toward poverty relief means that the people best suited toward advocating for economic justice are the poor themselves—which means that Jesus may be calling us to be poor ourselves, modeling his own incarnational ministry.

In an era where many people don’t feel like they have enough to help, Faithful in Small Things gives readers a blueprint for serving those in need when you are a person in need—and even suggests that this model is the most effective and reflects the Kingdom of God. It’s a powerful, engaging work that moves people from helplessness to empowerment.

“How we define poverty is important if we truly wish to help reduce it.”

Perhaps you have read about Myers’ four-part definition of poverty or “When Helping Hurts.” What those books do in theory this book builds upon in practicality, providing specific context for ministry to the poor in North America. If you are not familiar with those other works then this short read is a great primer and excellent summary. It compels anyone who wants to be effective in caring for the poor to first understand their own poverty and be willing to listen and learn first.

I wonder if the subtitle will unintentionally alienate some readers. This book is not simply for those who already consider themselves needy (though it will be a great encouragement to those who feel their meager offerings are not important). Those who have themselves experienced a material lack are generally the ones who understand more readily the struggles of poverty and how to best address it. The principles and examples detailed are more important for those who care but who are not acquainted with poverty themselves or close enough to those who are experiencing it.


The author reminds readers to have humility as they approach the multifaceted issues of poverty. “I don’t believe the question is whether we are broken people but rather whether we have discovered our own brokenness yet.” Understanding our own pride and self-righteousness in former approaches will enable us to get to the root of the problems instead of just putting bandages on the symptoms.

He also addresses some factors that impede progress like the prevalent thought that many Christians assume poverty is caused by laziness and poor choices. For those who have not experienced poverty firsthand it is hard to comprehend how abuse, oppression, and injustice play a key role in reducing the power to make good choices. When a mother must choose between obeying the law or feeding her child it is condescending to look on her incarceration or homelessness and say, ‘Well, if she had just made better choices...’

This is an important read for individuals, mission’s councils, and non-profits both big and small. In this we are given a window into the life of the rural poor to awaken our compassion and we come away better equipped and armed with compassion and effective tools to better serve as Jesus's hands and feet.

In Kevin Wiebe's first book, "Faithful in Small Things", readers will be convicted about our lack of care for the poor. Wiebe shares his own experience of growing up poor and exhorts his readers to care for those less fortunate. I appreciated his candor and transparency, as well as the way he tied Biblical truths to the points he was making.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.