Remember the Poor

If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, … thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need. Deuteronomy 15:7, 8.
At times following the return of the exiles from Babylon, the wealthy Jews had gone directly contrary to these commands. When the poor were obliged to borrow to pay tribute to the king, the wealthy had lent them money, but had exacted a high rate of interest. By taking mortgages on the lands of the poor, they had gradually reduced the unfortunate debtors to the deepest poverty. Many had been forced to sell their sons and daughters into servitude; and there seemed no hope of improving their condition, no way to redeem either their children or their lands, no prospect before them but ever-increasing distress, with perpetual want and bondage. Yet they were of the same nation, children of the same covenant, as their more favored brethren….
As Nehemiah heard of this cruel oppression, his soul was filled with indignation…. He saw that if he succeeded in breaking up the oppressive custom of exaction he must take a decided stand for justice. With characteristic energy and determination he went to work to bring relief to his brethren.
The fact that the oppressors were men of wealth, whose support was greatly needed in the work of restoring the city, did not for a moment influence Nehemiah. He sharply rebuked the nobles and rulers, and when he had gathered a great assembly of the people he set before them the requirements of God touching the case….
This record teaches an important lesson. “The love of money is the root of all evil” (1 Timothy 6:10). In this generation the desire for gain is the absorbing passion…. We were all debtors to divine justice, but we had nothing with which to pay the debt. Then the Son of God, who pitied us, paid the price of our redemption. He became poor that through His poverty we might be rich. By deeds of liberality toward His poor we may prove the sincerity of our gratitude for the mercy extended to us.
Conflict and Courage p. 267′
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Prayer Requests
—–Please continue to pray for Esther and her children who are traveling across country to help her best friend who recently had a baby by C-section. Rose
—– I come to you asking for prayers. My son in law, Shannon and my 3 grandchildren were in a horrible accident when They collided with a school bus. Luckily The bus didn’t have any students The two youngest children; Kinsley and Grayson are fine just some seat belt abrasions and not so pleasant memories of the crash. The oldest child, Jaelyn was banged up pretty bad and has a broken eye socket a concussion and some facial cuts. She doesnt remember any of it. Shannon had to be transported to Birmingham where he is in critical condition. He has multiple brain bleeds, one of which is very serious, multiple face fractures, internal injuries, and I believe a broken ankle.
They did surgery for 4 1/2 hours to stop the critical bleed. His skull had to be let off because there was so much swelling. Right now they are not really concerning themselves about the other injuries just trying to fix the bleeds He is in very critical condition. He has a long fight ahead of him and needs a lot of prayers. He is a godly man a great father and them children need their daddy. Please pray to guide the doctors and a Devine healing to take place. And pray the horrid memories this children have of the wreck will fade from their memories and they can be reunited with him soon. They have asked about him non stop today. Tina
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Dear Friends,
Years ago, when I worked at Lyster Army Hospital, a patient who had been shot in the leg. When he was wheeled in, all the other soldiers couldn’t help laughing and teasing him for being there. He took it all good naturedly. I was very curious and asked one of them why the reaction. I was told that this soldier who was the object of the others’ laughter, was on the Military Police force. He and a few buddies had nothing to do one afternoon, so they started bragging about one thing or another. This young MP told everyone that he could twirl a gun like the cowboys in the old western movies did. Of course, the others challenged him on it.
Confident of his prowess, he began to demonstrate. Somehow when he went to take the gun out of the holster, however, it became stuck. His finger became all twisted up with the trigger. In trying to free himself, the gun went off and the bullet went into his leg at such an odd angle that it traveled down the bone and came out of his foot. That one little moment gave him many months of pain, difficult rehabilitation, and tons of embarrassment.
How often, we “shoot ourselves in the foot” like that soldier. One unguarded word, one careless action, one momentary event can change our life for good or ill. Jesus tells us, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” Matt 12:34-37 The wise man observed, “Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.” Prov 20:11
As we think upon our weak, blundering ways, we become discouraged and cry as did Paul, “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Rom 7:24 How helpless and weak we are. Even if we try with all our might cannot deliver ourselves from our the chains that bind us. “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.” Jer 13:23
How much we need a Saviour! How desperately we need Someone Who can empower us to do right. Praise God! We do have such a One—even the Only Begotten Son of God! He is “the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by” Him. John 14:6 Think of it! He does not turn us away. He does not force us and whip us into shape. No! Our Great Creator loves us with an everlasting love and draws us to Him with His loving kindness. What a wonderful Saviour! Moreover, He does not stop there, He leads and guides us on the steep and narrow path that leads to Heaven. He promises, “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.” Is 30:21 “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” Ps 32:8
May we come to Him now, all weak and helpless as we are, assured that He will not turn us away. May we allow His to change us into His image, that His love may flow out to those around us. May we follow Him all the way to His Heavenly Kingdom is my prayer.
Rose