1. Give to the People Who Hold Signs
You see them all the time. “Homeless. Hungry. Will Work for Food.” The homeless come to us in pretty predictable packages these days. Nearly always we just ignore them. We are going to get into a pattern of giving to these people.
It’s controversial, I know. You might think, “What if those guys take that money and buy liquor or drugs with it?” Or, “They have made decisions that got them to where they are—they deserve what they get in life.”
The poor are rightly understood as the “oppressed poor” in the Greek lexicon. The poor have been oppressed by the same essential dynamics for millennia. The Evil One is beating them up. He is oppressing them in a variety of ways. We aren’t excused from caring for the oppressed poor just because they made poor decisions—or just because they might spend the money we give them to get high.
It’s not our job to evaluate the motives of those who are hungry. The call of God is simply to relieve the suffering of others.
2. Fast on Behalf of the Poor
If you want to see something big happen, start to approach God in a serious manner. Jesus said in Matthew 6, “When you fast,” not “if you fast.”
If you are new to the discipline of fasting, start with a missed meal. The benefits of fasting always come after you are through with it all. You will probably not feel all that inspired as you miss the meal(s). Ask God to stir up your spiritual temperature during this time.
3. Pray Dangerous Prayers—“God, send the poor … ”
It is impossible to have any sort of relationship with the poor if you never connect with them. Pray a breakthrough prayer along these lines: “God, send the poor across my path.” God loves to answer that kind of prayer. He will do something soon as you utter that to Him.
