Giving – Paul Nordman

Tending to Our Corner of the World

For years, and regrettably far too many of them, I was overwhelmed by the magnitude of human need. “It is unfixable,” I pondered, “There will always be poverty, exploitation, oppression, and abuse. No matter how I help today, there will certainly be as much need tomorrow, and likely more.” I was dispirited to the point of paralysis, donating here and there, yes, but always with a sense of resignation to a problem unsolved and the futility of my pittance. Didn’t Jesus say, “The poor you will always have with you”?¹ “What’s the use?” I thought. “I can give them everything I have and change nothing but to join their ranks.”

Over time, it occurred to me the poor and oppressed might see things differently. Take the church in Macedonia, for instance. Despite their own “severe affliction” and “extreme poverty,” they “overflowed in a wealth of generosity”² toward others in need. Paul marvels at the heartfelt zeal of this humble people, “For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints . . .”³ To these eager believers, poverty was not a point to ponder but a reality to relieve. Now. No need to overthink it.

We all live in our little corner of the world, and it is here that Jesus, through His Spirit, stirs us, calls us, and leads us into action. Were we to let the enormity of global need paralyze us into inaction, need itself might be unmet in our so-called “sphere of influence.” So this is the lesson I’ve learned: Don’t worry about the big picture — God’s got that — but just act wherever and however He calls me today. That’s all He asks.

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.” — Isaiah 58:6-8 NIV

Father, You are good and Your ways are right. Keep me mindful of the need around me today — be it physical or spiritual — and show me what You want me to do. Move in and through me by Your Spirit. In Christ I pray. Amen.

¹ Mark 14:7 NIV
² 2 Corinthians 8:2 ESV
³ 2 Corinthians 8:3-4 ESV

How God Gives

I was helping out a few years ago at “Christmas Cheer,” the Salvation Army’s annual event whereby disadvantaged families in Central Ohio receive groceries for their own holiday feast and a toy for each child in the home. There was the good-natured chatting with the steady stream of folks—engagement is my favorite part of the evening—and plenty of excitement about Christmas. At one point, a man came through the line, accompanying a friend but not filling a cart of his own. A certain resignation contoured his face as he explained to me, “I’m homeless. I can’t take anything because I have no place to keep it.” Who knows how this man got to such a point—addictions, mental illness, exploitation, a series of poor decisions? But this was poverty.

God cares for the poor. His heart is with them and his actions are for them—mind, body and soul. Writes the apostle James to Christian believers, “Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?”¹ This is not to suggest poverty itself is a means to heaven, rather faith is, and for many, coming to the end of our own means is the beginning of reliance on God. Could there be a more earnest plea of “Give us this day our daily bread”² than when uttered from lips of those who have none at all? Then how does God answer these petitions of the poor?

He says “yes” through people. And not just those with means, for like the widow who put into the temple treasury all she had, two copper coins,³ those who have the least are often the most generous with what they have. God will indeed “deliver the needy who cry out,”⁴ and when we so pour ourselves into others, we do so not only to them, but to Christ himself. For He will one day say to some, “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink . . . Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”⁵ This is a promise; it will happen. So, whether you give to the poor directly or through a ministry you know to be responsible and effective in helping them emerge from poverty’s grasp, do so eagerly, joyfully and expectantly, for the day comes when we will stand as one before Him who unites us in Himself—Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Father, give me an undivided heart, that my love for You would blossom in generosity toward others. Lead me in Your ways in heart and in action. In Christ I pray. Amen.

¹ James 2:5 ESV
² Matthew 6:11 ESV
³ Luke 21:1-4
⁴ Psalm 72:12
⁵ Matthew 26:35, 40