Bobbie and I have been on several trips to Uganda recently and have seen first hand the devastating impact HIV AIDS is having in Africa, and the enormous consequences it's having on a generation. Whilst there, we saw the incredible work Pastors Gary & Marilyn Skinner are doing with widows and orphans through Watoto Ministries. When faced with the sheer size and complexity of the problem it can leave you believing that the need is insurmountable, sometimes preventing us from responding at all. But as Christians, God's Word implores us time and again about our responsibility to the poor.
Psalm 41:1 reads, "Blessed is he who considers the poor…" My question is, "Do we?" I wonder how much time do you spend considering the plight of the poor? Is the poor just the homeless person on a city street and those living in poverty in parts of Africa? Perhaps where you live you don't see a whole lot of poverty, so you're not directly confronted by the need to consider the poor. We can sometimes bring our definition of 'poor' to its lowest and most absolute form, which in turn can affect how responsible or involved we feel we should be in bringing answers. When we start thinking of the poor as anyone who is less fortunate than ourselves, we'll never have any difficulty finding people to consider.
Considering the poor is the responsibility of a Christian, and it's a responsibility that comes with promise. If we read on in Psalm 41 it says: "Blessed is he who considers the poor; The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble. The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive, and he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. The Lord will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed." In a similar vein, Proverbs 19:17 tells us that, "He who has pity on the poor, lends to the Lord."
Although receiving should never be our motivation for helping the poor, time and again I have found these scriptures to be true in my own life and that of others. Our compassion and generosity towards the orphan, the widow, the alien and the poor moves God's heart.
There's no doubt about it, the Bible has a whole lot more to say about our attitude to the poor than it does about some of the other things we hold very dear as leaders. Here are three attitudes to guard against if we are to effectively respond to the needs of the poor:
1. Excuses
In the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 30-37) Jesus shared the story of the man who was robbed, attacked and left for dead on the street. He parallels the response of two religious men who crossed the street when confronted by the dying man and the actions of the Samaritan who stopped to help. I'm sure the two men who kept walking would have been able to justify their inaction. Perhaps they had to get to an important business meeting or had to get to the bank or the supermarket before closing time. Maybe they thought they were not in a position to help.
Similarly, we can have a myriad of excuses that can prevent us from helping the poor. We can hide behind our busyness, our lack of resource or our perceived distance from the problem. This is the equivalent of 'crossing the road' when faced with the reality of people's needs, circumstances and situations. It actually says a whole lot about our priorities and who we are.
The scriptures warn us of the consequences of ignoring the plight of the poor. Proverbs 21:13 reads, "Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard", and Proverbs 28:27 tells us that, "He who gives to the poor will not lack, but he who hides his eyes will have many curses." If we respond to the needs of the poor God will give us the provision and capacity to continue to do so. After all, it's He who gives food to the sower and bread for food (2 Corinthians 9:10).
2. A Judgemental Attitude
Ignorance can cause us to make wrong judgements about the underprivileged and the poor. We can make presumptions about why people are poor; we can make judgements about their happiness, how smart they are, and their willingness to be helped.
A judgemental attitude can actually ostracise us from the very people we're meant to be helping. Let me explain. Proverbs 28:11 says, "A rich man may be wise in his own eyes but a poor man who has discernment sees right through him." I think when it comes to a person who is less fortunate than us they often have had to develop 'street smarts' to survive and get through life. This ability can in turn help them discern between those with bad motives, judging attitudes and tokenistic responses and those with a genuine heart to help. Let's never allow a judgemental spirit affect our willingness to extend a hand to the hurting.
3. A Moralising Attitude
Have you ever been in a situation where you were made to feel like you don't care enough about the circumstances and needs of the poor by someone who thinks they somehow have a line share on compassion? They can deride the wealthy, and be moralistic and critical toward how others respond to the poor in order to elevate themselves. Generosity is fantastic, but when it's flashy, elitist and trying to prove something it's hollow and unattractive, and again, the very people we're wanting to help are likely to see right through it!
We need to ensure that we keep a spirit of cooperation and an attitude that says 'together we can make a greater difference'.
Now that we have identified heart attitudes that hinder our response to the poor, let's consider how as individuals we can start making a difference today:
1. Keep building your own life
We're all alive for Kingdom purpose and as part of God's Church, we're all part of God's plan for humanity. Our Christianity should never be just about us having enough food for our table alone; it's about building the kind of life that helps put food on other's tables. I think the best thing we can all do is take a hold of what's in our hand and become successful at it. We should all be committed to continually building our lives in a way that sets us up to be a blessing to others.
2. Be part of something bigger than yourself
On our own we can do a little, but together we can do a lot. Being a part of a church that has vision and getting behind that vision will cause us to be more effective than each of us trying to do it on our own. There is truly strength in numbers.
3. Practice generosity everywhere
I don't believe generosity comes naturally; in fact our human tendency is more likely to hold back or think of ourselves first. I believe we need to challenge this thinking and instead build a culture that practices generosity everywhere. It may be a smile or a kind word to the cashier at the grocery store, or a gift to someone going through a tough time.
We need to work against anything in us that tries to draw back from being generous with our finances, our words and our actions. If we have the kind of attitude where we see the opportunity for generosity, finding need and people who could do with our help, we will never be a problem living life generously everyday.
4. Befriend someone less fortunate than you
I've already mentioned it, but it's worth repeating; there are people in need all around us. Sometimes we can become so consumed with our own world and needs that we become removed or distant from this reality. Why don't we decide that we're going to come alongside somebody who may be less fortunate than us? I'm not talking about a tokenistic, patronising friendship; rather become enough of a friend to really understand their need and what the real situation is in their life. Friendship costs you something.
Let's decide together, as we plan and build vision for the future, that we're going to consider the poor and find every opportunity we can to make a lasting difference. Let's be committed to tackling the issue of injustice and poverty from every direction.
©2006 Brian Houston. Permission required to reproduce this article in any form.