Can a bike tour really end the cycle of poverty?

What is poverty, anyway?

What is the 'cycle of poverty'?

Millennium Development Goals

Resources for further study

Ending the Cycle of Poverty


There are no easy answers or quick fixes when it comes to addressing the cycle of poverty. But that’s no reason to ignore it. The complex economic, social and spiritual issues related to poverty demand a comprehensive and multi-pronged response.

Through its agencies and partners, the Christian Reformed Church is walking with the poor, seeking to fulfill God’s call to defend the cause of the weak and fatherless and stand up for the rights of the oppressed (Psalm 82).

The Sea to Sea 2008 Bike Tour serves as a way to further enable the Church to respond to that call. Individuals, groups and congregations are encouraged to get active in serving the poor in some new way, whether in your own community or half a world away.

Funds generated through the tour will be used to support new or ongoing CRC initiatives in three areas of development (business, community and leadership)—each one ending the cycle of poverty for individuals, families and communities in places all over the world. The primary agencies through which these projects are carried out are:

•    Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC)
•    Christian Reformed World Missions
•    Partners Worldwide

> Allocation of tour proceeds

> How Donations Are Used

Other key partners:

RCA Global Mission
Christian Reformed Home Missions
Office of Social Justice and Hunger Action
Business Development
& Job Creation

 

  • Building a network of successful Christian business people who, through direct involvement, share skills, resources and entrepreneurial acumen for mutual learning and benefit. [Partners Worldwide]
  • Offering community-based loans so people can invest in their small business to generate income. [CRWRC] [Partners Worldwide]
  • Creating and maintaining quality employment through access to capital and a revolving loan fund. [Partners Worldwide]
Community Development
& Health Services

 

  • Working with poor farmers to help them improve their agriculture techniques, create greater crop yields, and protect the environment. [CRWRC]
  • Mitigating the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS in more than 13 countries where, because the income-generating population is all but wiped out, many villages are trapped in a cycle of poverty. [CRWRC]
  • Helping local recovery organizations move from emergency response following a disaster to addressing the long-term needs of their community. [CRWRC Disaster Response Services]
Leadership Development
& Education

 

  • Addressing sinful patterns of leadership that enrich a few at the expense of many and perpetuates systemic injustice. [World Missions]
  • Advocating for the oppressed and offering training in civil rights, human rights, peace-building, and biblical justice. [CRWRC]
  • Ensuring a strong, Christian leadership at the community level so that outreach programs meet the physical and spiritual needs of those in poverty. [CRWRC] [World Missions]
  • Teaching leaders the fundamentals of good business practice and challenging people to understand that business is ministry. [Partners Worldwide]
  • Discipling believers to be radical followers of Jesus who live with sensitivity to their culture but not in subjection to it. [World Missions]