The Hunger Factor

Hunger is a powerful motivator.  It can drive people to venture out into new and unchartered waters to find work, seek a new trade, change who and what they are into what they can be.

I like working with people who are hungry, people who know that if they work hard and learn what to do and do it well, they can go far.

I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need.  I can do all things through him who strengthens me. - Philippians 4:12-13

The secret Paul is talking about is the strength we gain in knowing we are not alone, that God is with us and will help us.

This afternoon, we will begin our next Elijah workshop session with a hot lunch of soup and bread.  Before we get down to the work of learning new skills and putting what we learn into practice, we break bread together.  We strengthen ourselves for the journey.

It makes sense, doesn't it?

If we are strengthened, we can focus on our work and that helps us learn more.

Paul understood this and focused on strengthening the growing community of faithful with his letters.  He knew they needed encouragement and support or they might give up.  It was not easy to put the Gospel into practice, to share with others and love one another, to be supportive when forces are working against you.

The goal was to have the distant communities become strong enough to run and grow on their own, without the need for support from Paul, and as the letter indicates, that was starting to happen.  The new church community was sending support back to help Paul in his ministry.

This is the goal I have for Elijah, our video production project at St. James Fordham.  I believe the attendees who are truly hungry to learn will grow into a business that will be able to run on its own, supporting local businesses and organizations with production and post-production work.

When it works, we can expand the skill set of the team to include web design and maintenance, marketing and graphics work, and others.

Oh, and there is one other thing.

At the end of each session, we pack up bags of canned soup, dry goods and fruit and each attendee takes a bag to someone in need, someone shut-in or alone, someone else who is hungry.

So far, the model is working.  More people are signing up to come.  Eat. Learn. Share.

You might say that the program is capitalizing on the hunger factor, and you would be correct.  But while that may sound bad to those who have a disdain for capitalism, there is that element of outreach that can't be ignored.

We will build a business that will be sustainable through its work, and in the process we will feed the hungry and support the church.  Is that so bad?

What do you think?

More to come...


 Image credit: believeinme33 / 123RF Stock Photo