Today's Daily Bread
Open-Handed Help
A homeless man spends time in our local library. One afternoon,
while I was writing there, I took a lunch break. After I finished the
first half of a turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich, an image of the man’s
face came to mind. A few minutes later, I offered him the untouched part
of my lunch. He accepted.
This brief encounter made me realize that with all that God has given
me, I needed to do more to help those who are less fortunate. Later, as
I thought about this, I read Moses’ instructions on providing for the
poor. He told the Israelites: Do not “shut your hand from your poor
brother, but . . . open your hand wide to him” (Deut. 15:7-8). An open
hand symbolizes the way God wanted His nation to provide for
impoverished people—willingly and freely. No excuses, no holding back
(v.9). God had given to them, and He wanted them to give generously
enough to supply whatever was “sufficient” for the need (v.8).
When we offer open-handed help to the poor, God blesses us for our
kindness (Ps. 41:1-3; Prov. 19:17). With His leading, consider how you
might “extend your soul to the hungry” (Isa. 58:10) and freely give to
help others in Jesus’ name.
Grant us, then, the grace for giving
With a spirit large and free,
That our life and all our living
We may consecrate to Thee. —Murray
With a spirit large and free,
That our life and all our living
We may consecrate to Thee. —Murray
You may give without loving, but you can’t love without giving.
No comments:
Post a Comment