The Theory of the Broken Window

I Samuel 17:51

• In the early 80’s James Wilson and George Kelling wrote and developed the “broken windows” thesis to explain the function of negative neighborhood characteristics.
• How does a town develop a “bad section of town?”
• “Oh no don’t go down there it’s the bad section of town”.
• You know that section of town was not intended to be classified as such when it was built!
• When that crack house was built, its purpose was not to be a crack house.
• Somewhere there is some good history to that house regardless of its current decay.
• How do these things happen?  This neighborhood is thriving.
• That neighborhood is full of every possible crime.
• What causes the decay of a neighborhood?
  • According to this thesis evidence of decay starts when:
    • A broken window is not repaired.
    • Trash is left to accumulate.
    • Deteriorating exteriorsare allowed to go a long period of time without any corrective attention
  • The theory states that a broken window that is left unfixed can encourage more crime and vandalism because it sends a message of:
    • Apathy.
    • A sense of indifference
    • A lack of concern.
• Henry Cisneros who was a member of a Washington D.C think tank and later became the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development decided to test this broken window theory.
• A car was placed in that seedy part of town, and invariably it would contact the attention of those vandals.

BUT ……

• Place a car with a busted or broken window, in that same neighborhood just a different location, and the car was vandalized overnight.
• They took a car to a more elaborate neighborhood and placed it on a street and the car went unnoticed and untouched.
  BUT……
  • Take that same car in that same upscale neighborhood and bust a window in it and allow it to set there……
  • Invariably that car would sustain some type of vandalism.
  • They went into certain sections of towns and broke windows in houses and invariably more windows in the homes were broken out by individuals regardless of location.
  • It gave the house a sense of no one cared or was in charge.
  • It gave a community a feeling of anything is allowed to go on here.
  • Regardless of what part of town these experiments were conducted, the result was the same, just different time schedules.
     
    • The conclusion was formed that if something is broken and allowed to stay broken, it gives the appearance that:
      
      • No one cares.
      • A lack of concern.
      • An indifference.
    • The broken window theory concluded with the following suggestions:
      • Quick replacement of broken windows.
      • Prompt removable of abandoned vehicles.
      • Fast clean up of illegally dumped items.
      • Quick paint out of all graffiti.
      • Clean side walks and street gutters.
      • Fresh paint on buildings.
      • Providing places for teens to gather rather than on the street.
  • New York City Mayor Rudolph Guiliani when elected in 1993 one of the very first acts as Mayor was to take the graffiti laden garbage trucks and spend 1.6 million dollars on having the trucks repainted.
  • Some of the paint jobs cost more than the truck was worth.
  • But if that garbage truck went on the streets, it was graffiti clean.
  • He ordered that the subway entrances be stripped of any and all gang related graffiti and be repainted at a cost of another 1.1 million dollars.
  • He instituted a program where racy billboards with questionable and suggestive pictures and language be banned in certain family and school areas.
  • Guiliani ordered his police dept to begin enforcing the lowest level offenses in the city.
    • Jaywalking
    • Vagrancy
    • Public intoxication
    • Subway fare evasion
    • Even the “squeegee men” who had been wiping windshields of stopped cars and then demanding payment were targeted.
    • Immediately crime rates began to not fall, but plummet.
    • According to a 2001 study of crime trends by William Sousa and a 2002 crime study by Hope Corman, crime continued to fall, especially serious crime,
      ……rates of both petty and serious crime fell suddenly and significantly and continued to drop over a time span of the next ten (10) years.
    • Although the broken window theory is not the complete answer, it definitely is a part of the answer.

—–

• That day on the battlefield, as the Armies of Israel were being defied, there stood a 9’- 9” tall man named Goliath.
• As David ran towards that giant, Goliath was only the Big problem.
• He was the one who was noticed.
• But the Bible states that when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead; they fled.
• Now the philistines has been fussing and fighting with Israel for years and years.
• They have been allowed to hang around and cause grief on numerous occasions.
• Instead of being dealt with in a profound manner, that broken window has gone un-repaired and now Israel is facing one Giant of a problem.
• I would like to pose the question of “Does the “broken window theory” apply to our spiritual lives?
• The Word of God has given us constant and repetitive promises of divine help and intervention.
• Is it possible that small spiritual problems left unattended will rise to become large problems?
• If we experience a spiritual broken window and it goes un-repaired does that inform the Devil that we are unconcerned?
• The Bible states that it is the small foxes that spoil the vine.
• It’s the state of disrepair concerning the small things that ushers in the bigger problems!
• Our Church was established in 1948, for 59 years that Church has stood for Apostolic truth.
• This is the beginning of my fourth year as Pastor.
• My family and I evangelized for ten years, I am a REVIVALIST!
• I don’t believe in just having formal Church, we need to reach our community with this wonderful gospel and powerful revelation of Jesus Christ.

WE NEED REVIVAL!

• Say whatever you want to, believe whatever you choose, use whatever excuses you can conjure up.
• But God wants to grant Holy Ghost filled revival to his Church!
• 10 new converts is not enough, 20 is not enough, 100 is not enough!
• We need to reach this lost community, state, country and world with this gospel.
• I felt that our Church needed to do more!
• I went into prayer concerning what avenues to take to cause our Church to reach the community.
• Through prayer and fasting we instituted a plan of action for our Church.
  • At the first of this year we started:
    • Fasting, at least two people have fasted every day this year.
    • Prayer, 30 minutes before service AND every Tuesday morning at 4:30 A.M.
    • Letting people sing who has never sang before.
• I purposed in my heart that regardless of Wednesday night Bible study or Sunday School or Sunday Night Evangelistic, the service doesn’t proceed until we have worshipped!
  • LOOK WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE
    • Sis. Forbes healing.
    • Bro Dames healing.
    • Jobs given at the last second.
    • Four new families.
    • $51,500.00 for new properties; all paid for!
    • Raised $6,500.00 for new carpet.
    • Having my Son and his family returned to us in a spiritual condition.
    • Food pantry instituted.
    • Six weeks ago we baptized 12 new souls; #12 being my 74 year old Dad.
  • Last Sunday night started kind of weird.
    • My Mom.
    • Bro Dorris
    • Next hour and a half we prayed for people.
• You can talk about revival and all of its beauty all you want to!
• You can try and live on yesterday’s memories of revival.
• But I am convinced now more than ever that these things come but by prayer and fasting!
• We have people who have never come to 4:30 prayer meeting and people who haven’t fasted one day for our Church!
• But that hasn’t stopped the Lord from recognizing those faithful few.
• Three weeks ago we set a new record of 15 in attendance of 4:30 prayer.
• Last Tuesday we had 13.
• It all started out with 4 now others want to get on board.
• I have been asked to come and share this concept with four other Churches who have heard about the happenings here at Greater Life.
• If you want to see Revival, fix the broken window of your spiritual life.
• Just how important is it to you to see that miracle transform before your very eyes?
• How bad do you need a healing in your body?
  • Fix the broken window of:
    • 4:30 is too early. That’s just an excuse for it’s hard to do!
    • Lackadaisical worship.
    • Unfaithful Church attendance.
    • Occupying until he comes.
    • Conflict with Church leadership.
• Believe me when you get the broken window fix, there will be adversity arise.
• When Mayor Guiliani spent the money from the city’s budget, 1.6 million on garbage trucks and 1.1 million on removing graffiti, the city council fought him every step of the way.
• Since we have instituted this concept in our Church we have had seasoned members leave.
• People who at one time would have taken a bullet for me have walked away from the Church, BUT IT HASN”T STOPPED REVIVAL!
• Some of those who have recently been won to Christ didn’t make it.
• But you can rest assured of one thing; they will NEVER, EVER forget their encounter with a Holy God and a loving forgiving Church!
• Fix your Broken Windows!