Loving the poor

This has been an ongoing discussion at RCC recently. About 3-4 weeks ago, our homework in the connection groups talked a lot about helping the poor and what we can do to help out. It gave some specific examples on who might be the poor and who might not be. This sparked an ongoing discussion in my CG and I wanted to share some of my thoughts on it here.

You see, it was my contention that in the United States we have very very few people who are truly poor. That's not to say there aren't people who are struggling to make ends meet or who are having a tough time with their current circumstances, but rather that they are not truly poor. I look at some of the orphans in Mexico or some of the people in India or Sri Lanka. When I look at what is happening in these areas where people are honestly wondering where today's meal is coming from I struggle with anybody in the United States being called poor.

There are just so very few people in the United States that have to worry where dinner is coming from. Now I was told at one point by a person who had been on government assistance that the cheese had mold on it. That was supposed to indicate to me how bad it was getting government cheese, but dang I've cut mold off ccheese before that I had to pay for! Free cheese that needs some mold cut off ddoesn't sound like a huge sacrifice to me.

You see, here in the US I think we are spoiled. We have become spoiled rotten. We do not believe we can live life with only one car for a household or no cable TV or no cell phone. Americans are looking at what our parents have and want it all for ourselves without doing the work for them. This is why the latest report is that saavings is down to the lowest point since the great depression. Everyones' income iis going to service debt because the question of can we afford this is now about affording the payments and not actually buying something.

I heard a pastor this week encourage his congregation to donate lots of gas cards for those people who need to fill the tank so they can get to work. I don't see that as really loving people. Sure, meeting an immediate need makes a person feel good and makes those who had their need met happy, but it does nothing to really love them by perceiving their needs and meeting them. People need to have help in understanding living on a budget. People need help with how to develop a budget and live with it. People need more than a temporary band-aid of meeting their immediate need, but rather they need our time to learn some life skills. That is loving people...including those who feel poor.