As human beings created in the image of God, it is baked into our DNA to help and care for people in need. This is especially true for those of us who know the Lord and call God our Father. His heart breaks to see His children broken and hurting, and we can’t help but for our hearts to break as well.
If you’ve ever seen extreme poverty up close, you know that it is evil. It’s an evil that undermines the abundance God instilled in creation for all living things and robs people of dignity, quality of life and sometimes their very lives.
WHO are the poor?
Those Jesus called “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40). Those without enough: not enough food, water, medicine, shelter, education, family or community. They look like vulnerable children, orphans, widows, prisoners, homeless, refugees, children forced into prostitution or slave labor, the abused, the exploited — those with no power to provide for or protect themselves.
It can be difficult to look the monster of poverty in the face. It’s tempting to turn away, to ignore it. But I have good news! The Lord does not desire to shame or guilt us, but to EMPOWER us!
Today we are called and equipped to make a difference in the darkest places in this world — even in places where many dare not look. We will also discover that our own lives are transformed in the most beautiful ways when we do.
As children of God we have His nature in us, and that means we all have at our disposal an incredible power called COMPASSION. You might feel powerless against poverty. There may be a hundred different reasons you would say, “I can’t.” But I want you to know — with compassion you can! Compassion in you, fueled by the Holy Spirit, will give you the desire, the courage, the strength and the perseverance to sacrificially serve the poor.
The most beautiful thing in all of this is that when we die to ourselves and care for the poor, we actually FIND OURSELVES. When we share the good news and hope of Christ with others, we find hope for ourselves in return.
Isaiah 58:10 “If you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.”
We have a unique opportunity to live this message out. Would you prayerfully consider sponsoring a child with Compassion International today?
Visit https://www.compassion.com/ to learn how you can sponsor a child.