Ask Congress to Consider Matthew 6:21: Put Our Treasure Where Our Hearts Lie.

Click here to send a message letting your U.S. Senators and Representatives know you treasure God’s children and struggling families, and so should our Federal Budget.

In the past two years’ budget and deficit struggles, we have repeated the wisdom of Matthew 6:21: “where your treasure lies, there your heart will be also.” If we treasure God’s shalom - the biblical vision of wholeness for communities - we need a Faithful Budget that creates a Circle of Protection around programs that serve the most vulnerable. Prayers, letters, phone calls, and vigils make a difference. One Senate staffer told me half all the letters his office received about budget issues came from faithful constituents concerned about poverty.

But, with a Sequester eight days away, we’re not done yet. Send a message to your U.S. Senators and Representatives here.

The Sequester will undermine much of what our nation should treasure. For example, 600,000 babies and young children will lose the nutrition aid afforded by the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program, and 70,000 young children will lose access to Head Start. We want to treasure our nation’s children, yet one in four kids under age five live in poverty. Please keep the faith and send a message to your members of Congress TODAY.

Lenten Blessings,

Shantha

Share Advent Hope with Your Community and Congress.

There are just a few weeks left to reach a deal that averts the “fiscal cliff.” While Congress is busy deal-making, many faith communities are taking up collections, putting up giving trees, or preparing food and gift baskets for those who might otherwise go without during the holiday season.

Any fiscal deal that doesn’t protect people in poverty goes against the spirit of generosity in our churches. If you haven’t yet, I hope you will click here to email your members of Congress and tell them about how your faith community is sharing Advent hope with neighbors in need.

Unfortunately, members of Congress are openly considering cuts to programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a powerful tool for fighting hunger among the 20 percent of children who live in food insecure households. If government reflects who we are – our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers – we should not be considering cuts to programs that lift up struggling families.

Please email your members of Congress about sharing Advent hope with neighbors in need. Then, click here to use this easy tool to share the message with a letter to the editor of a local newspaper. Let us keep Advent hope and prepare room in our hearts for the One who taught us how loving our neighbors leads us all to a more abundant life.

Work and Pray for a Faithful Budget

An interfaith coalition has been holding daily prayer vigils since July 11th to protect federal programs that serve people living in poverty. This coalition has formed the “Faithful Budget” campaign. Click here for worship, action, and news clip resources from the campaign.

Faith leaders met with President Obama to ask him to protect “the least of these” (Mt 25) in the budget and deficit debates leading up to the debt ceiling deal. The coalition brought religious leaders to Capitol Hill on July 26 to meet with the offices of Congressional leadership.

On July 28, it became clear we had to bring our prayers to the heart of the Capitol. Eleven faith leaders prayed there until they were forcefully removed and arrested.

Watch a video about our campaign here:

Sign our petition here.