Lending a hand (and accepting help) as spiritual practice

Pretty much everyday, these days, I have some sort of conversation with a client, a co-worker, or another acquaintance about the ways in which congregations are dealing with the economic crisis.  Many of these conversations are about belt-tightening and budget trimming. But more and more, the talk turns to how “hard times” can contribute to spiritual practice.

Those thoughts came to mind this morning as I was reading in the Washington Post that the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is reaching out to non-profit performing arts groups around the country in an effort to help them learn how to weather tough economic times. According to the article, the Center’s president, Michael Kaiser, is not as concerned about smaller organizations — which he says are “used to dealing with difficult situations” — as he is about groups that are “misdirecting efforts at downsizing.”

It occurred to me that there are a lot of smaller congregations with that same kind of experience.

What if these tough times are an opportunity for these congregations – folks who have been dealing with challenging financial situations for years – to share the skills and approaches that keep them vibrant and relevant?

It could be that there are congregations less adept at tight-belt management who could learn from some of their more frugal sisters and brothers. I’d be interested in hearing about partnerships that share this kind of expertise among congregations – especially the spiritual dimensions of those partnerships.