Little to no money, clothes, and/or food are the first things to pop into my mind, followed closely by third-world communities and the needy. Those were my thoughts, at least, until I heard these words on the radio the other day:
"Poverty is the result of hopelessness."
Those few words got me thinking. . . A lack of finances and material possessions merely scratch the surface of the word "poverty" don't they? I know plenty of incredible impoverished people, who are poor enough to need constant help from others, yet, live out each day with smiles on their faces and joy in their hearts. They may have had a stroke that leaves them unable to function on their own, let alone support their family. They may wear the same clothes four times a week and bathe once or twice in that same time. They may not have electricity or running water in their house. They may not know how they're going to pay for their medication that runs out tomorrow, or if there will be food on the table. BUT, they will come up to greet you, thanking God for the gift of simply being alive to see the day. They live lives of faith; trusting in the unknown, praising something greater than them, than this world. There is no poverty in that. There is hope.
While I could easily expand upon this topic, I'm going to leave it at that.
There are very real needs in the world today, needs, deficiencies, shortages, scarcities, etc of the basic essentials of life that I'm not trying to overlook. However, needs, just as poverty, don't stop at finances, material possessions, or third-world countries. Poverty comes in all shapes and sizes. I pray today that your faith is big enough to richly overcome any impoverished area of your life, and that you would continue to uncover pockets of hope that fulfill the depths of your heart, mind, body and soul.
No comments:
Post a Comment