DAILY READING
REFLECTION
Blessing of Food and Drink
by Judy Webb
“There need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you…He will richly bless you.” (Deuteronomy 15:4)
What does it mean to be poor? When I was a teen, I thought our family was poor. We didn’t have the latest fashions, sometimes we didn’t even have new clothes at all. But, we always had food on the table and a roof over our heads. To me, being poor meant starving people wearing rags and sleeping on the street. But, I am learning over the years that to be poor can mean many things.
We could have all the material comforts one could ask for, but we could still be poor. To not have love in your life, not feel needed is to be poor in one sense. Those who don’t yet know Jesus and His love and grace and forgiveness, are indeed poor. Our bellies might be full, and we can still starve for food, the Bread of Life. We might have all the water we need to be hydrated, but if we don’t know about The Living Water, we could die of thirst.
The words: “There need be no poor people among you,” are true. We can, and should provide for the physical needs of our neighbors. We are called to love one another and that means taking care of each other. Be sure that no one you know is lacking the basics.
But there is another type of poor, those who don’t know Jesus yet. We are called to share the Good News, to provide the path to the Bread of Life and show our neighbors where to find Living Water. Telling all we encounter about the value of a personal relationship with Jesus and then walking alongside them, is priceless, and a way to ensure there are no poor among us. Only those rich in the Word of God.
PRAYER
Lord, teach us to watch for anyone we can help, be it the food or clothing, or with the Good News. There is no richer life than one who is walking this life with Jesus at their side.
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