Ripe for Harvest

486 • R IPE FOR H ARVEST

men tend to reject and despise (cf. 1 Corinthians 1.26-29). Throughout church history, this principle proves to be true. Only the Lord can determine what vessels he will use for the honor of his Son, and the advancement of his Kingdom. It is his choice alone; and, whomever he elects, so does he empower and direct! TUMI: Affirming God’s Call for the Poor to Lead This is the heart of the irony of God’s use of men and women, and is testified in virtually every narrative involving God’s choice. While we tend to judge based on a person’s appearance or background, God looks to a person’s character and call. He does not often elect on the basis of one’s training, pedigree, socioeconomic background, or education. Rather, God looks on the heart (1 Sam. 16.7). Whomever God calls and empowers accomplishes his task, and he tends to select those who even the most experienced find detestable. The strength and wisdom of God are best displayed through human vessels which are weak and foolish, and his grace is made perfect through weakness. Those who appear to be useless to the keenest eye of the most experienced builders, may easily become the select vessel of God. By his grace and preparation, even the despised may become the very cornerstone of God’s enterprise. This is the heart of the divine irony of God’s selection of his leaders. For more than twenty years, The Urban Ministry Institute (TUMI), has been the training arm of World Impact . We design resources, programs, and tools that can equip servant leaders to plant and lead healthy, evangelical churches and movements which will advance the Kingdom in the cities of America and beyond. Our distinctive is that we concentrate our efforts of empowering those who seek to reach the lost among the urban disadvantaged. We are convinced that God will raise up an army of laborers who will transform their com munities through the Gospel, and its corollary acts of compassion, justice, and witness to the Kingdom. We desire, therefore, to provide the kind of theological, pastoral, and spiritual formation that will allow so-called despised people to access credible, affordable, and life-changing training where they live and minister. In order to attain this goal, we seek to transform both the content and method of theological education to make our structures conducive to empowering the urban poor. While traditional theological education and seminaries have been the mainstays of most Christian leadership development, the urban poor are often overlooked or completely ignored in their programs. As successful Towards a New Paradigm and Structure of Urban Leadership Development