I would describe this book not as a ‘how to’ but more as a holistic, long-term approach that helps development workers think differently about poverty and helps them create sustainable solutions to overcome the key factors that create poverty. 

Myers tries to answer a relevant question, “What is poverty?” How you answer that question will determine your course of action. For example: if poverty is not having clean water, we react to solve that problem. If we are only concerned with needs in this example we will only see lack of water. Without further thought, lack of water is the cause of poverty and providing water is the answer. However, behind the needs are issues such as ownership of the water. If this is the cause of the lack of water, then the response is to work on ownership and access. Yet behind those issues there are structures, such as caste that influences who gets the water and which often create insurmountable barriers to access. Behind structures are groups…behind groups are ideologies. (p. 82).  Understanding all of these issues helps us to create valid and long term solutions to help the poor. 

A great example of different approaches to these issues is found in this article, Should Africa Dump Agriculture for the Sake of Peace and Stability? 

Poverty is a complicated social issue involving all areas of life – physical, personal, social, cultural, and spiritual (p. 81) and we would do well to examine them if we truly want to help people in poverty. 

Take a look at this simple chart. It reflects the view people maintain about why people are poor and their inevitable response: 

The poor are sinners                                                          Evangelism and uplift

The poor are sinned against                                                Social action: working for justice

The poor lack knowledge                                                    Education

The poor lack things                                                          Relief/Social Welfare

The culture of the poor is flawed                                         Become like us/ours is better

The social system makes them poor                                  Change the system

For years I’ve fought the views of people in the first category – the poor are sinners and need the gospel. That may very well be true but if our ‘help’ stops there, it is a very short-sighted approach which may save their soul but will not lift them out of poverty. I would also argue that there isn’t much love in this approach if all we care about is leading the poor in a ‘Jesus prayer’ without addressing other needs such as food, water, and proper clothing. John would agree with this to, “If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God’s love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.” – I John 3:17