Poverty

When I began this blog and ministry, I also set up an official Orphan & Widow website {that I never actually told anyone about}. The website was going to be the official location where people could learn more about the ministry, poverty, and ways you could become involved in helping. Well, my efforts with the website have sort of wained over the past 6 months, as I have been investing more of my energy in the photography portion and the blog (believe it or not). But, when I was checking out the website this morning, and clicked on one of the links I had set up on Information about Poverty, I realized that it was really selfish of me to not be putting the information out there for you to learn about simply because "I have not finished perfecting the website". One of the links I clicked on had a running toll of everyone around the world who has died this hour from hunger, including their names, pictures, and where they are from. It was moving. What moved me even more was when I clicked on the "What you can do" tab and up popped a letter you can send to the government encouraging them to hold to the agreement they made in 2002 to give 0.7% of our national income to aid in poverty-stricken areas. I was struck because I have had this image in my mind of the US being very generous in our giving to aid poorer nations. As I was comparing this image I have had in my mind of what I thought our nation stood for universally, with the factual evidence that we do not give even 1% of our income toward the alleviation of poverty, I remembered Jesus' words about giving to the needy:

"Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." Matthew 6:1-6

A thought went through my head: "Are we not like the Pharisees?...flaunting our gifts to the poor before the crowds, making it appear that we are generous and abundant in our help to starving nations, when in truth we just keep piling up our own debt so that we can all maintain a certain standard of living?" In reality, we gave our word at the Monterrey Conference and at the Johannesburg Summit that we would contribute just 0.7% to poverty, and we have yet to even come up with a plan as to how to do this! I know the argument that many people will give to this: "How are we supposed to help other nations when our own nation is in such disarray and we have the poor just as well here?" And my answer to that is in Jesus' parable of the widow's offering.

And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, "Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out ouf their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."

We are to give even in our poverty. And, by the way, before thinking that most anyone in our country really does live in poverty, I encourage everyone to check out what poverty really does look like around the world. You will realize it is quite a relative term. And I pray we will have a check in our consciences next time we read the parable of The Rich Young Man, where Jesus says to this fellow, "'...go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.' When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, 'Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 19:21-22

My apologies everyone, for not making the website available sooner. Here it is (in hopes that I will be making it better in the near future): http://www.orphanandwidow.org/. The secondary site I referenced earlier is http://www.poverty.com/. I am in the process of collecting images of poverty to post on the website. If you have any you would like to contribute, please contact me at lwwebber@gmail.com

Calcutta


Darfur

Ethiopia

Haiti

Nicaragua

Cambodia

India

"The poor is disliked even by his neighbor, but the rich has many friends. Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor."

Proverbs 14:20-21