The American Dream & Seashells

Monday, July 5, 2010

Hot dogs, watermelon, fireworks, and flags: things we typically think of when it comes to summer, and especially the 4th of July. I saw many people dressed up in red, white, and blue while scurrying around Wal-Mart after church to get those last-minute items for their picnics and backyard bbq’s. I have to admit though, I wasn’t feeling patriotic. (However, forgetting a bag at the store, then having to drive all the way back to get it isn’t likely to put anyone in a fabulous mood!)

But my mind was on the morning’s sermon. It was the high school youth pastor, Chris’, turn to preach, and he felt the burden to share what God had been teaching him in an area that he admittedly fell short in: caring for the poor. The Bible describes the poor as those who are needy, oppressed, widowed, orphaned, or fatherless. In Deuteronomy 15:7-8, God commands His people not to be closefisted toward the poor in the land, but to be openhanded. More than anything else, the Bible talks about how we are to treat those in need around us.