Today’s my birthday, but I decided to give you a small gift instead of vice versa. Albeit an extra Words for the Day isn’t much of a gift, but in the spirit of Thanksgiving and the Lord allowing me to make it all of the way to 65 years of age, (I never thought I’d live to see 30), I wanted to do something extra today. I hope you enjoy it and your day today too.
A friend of mine responded to Words for the Day stating that he and his daughter have recently tapped into the treasure trove of blessings from heaven that I’d mentioned that day, and he told me that they discovered it was unnecessary to go half way around the world to find it. Indeed they found plenty of opportunity right at home, (literally in their own “back yard”).
He was surprised when his daughter came to him and told him that in their very own community there were plenty of children that routinely go hungry. The government feeds these kids a free breakfast and lunch during the week at school, but then they go home on Friday and don’t have anything to eat over the weekend.
Can you imagine being hungry all weekend?
Some say they’re only getting what they deserve; their parents ought to go out and work for a living like everyone else and then they’d have plenty to eat. Unfortunately there are many millions of people in this country who refuse to work, preferring instead to exist in a parasitical government welfare relationship consisting of no more in life than to have more babies and collect more checks. These insidious “enabler” government programs are not only rapidly draining our country of its limited resources, but are promoting generational welfare dependency, and people, (taxpayers), are up in arms about it and rightfully so.
However it’s also true that our country is suffering tremendous economic devastation due in part to President Obama and his cronies’ socialistic ideology, and anti-capitalistic fervor, and as a result far too many are unemployed, underemployed, or working at or below poverty level wages. There are many millions who want to work and earn a decent wage, but the opportunity simply does not currently exist.
After wading through the heated and divisive politics, often the most important point is completely overlooked and lost in the shuffle; the fact remains that innocent children are going hungry in this country. If the parents won’t take care of their kids, or are too poor to do so and can’t take care of them, who will?
My friend related that his daughter heard about a program called “Back Pack Buddies” where needy children are given a back pack full of food each Friday to enable them to have something to eat over the weekend. She wanted to start this at their local church, and after months of persistency and working diligently to overcome many obstacles, she finally got approval to get it started with 7 back packs per week. It was not a budgeted item for the church and had to become a faith based effort. She was undaunted however; and she and some friends persevered, (keeping their heads down and always trudging forward), and as more people heard about it, they slowly (but surely) began making progress and more donations came in. It has now grown to 100 per week!
Okay, so how has all of her effort worked out for her? Read his daughter’s observations detailing her latest experience and you decide…
“Yesterday I had 98 of the spots for Backpack Buddies filled. For some reason I waited to send the last 2 permission forms. I was having a hard time deciding which of the kids on the waiting list would get those last spots. At 2:00 one of my students asked if he could take the extra snacks from the day home with him–it was grapefruit. We had noticed for the last few weeks he would eat many, many breakfasts each morning but we just couldn’t decide if he really needed a bag or not. His parents are married, they have 4 children and both parents have jobs.
When he asked for the grapefruit I took that opportunity to ask him about his food at home. He responded with, “We have food at home.” I asked what kind of food they eat at their house. He said, “When we have cans of beans my mama cooks those and sometimes my brother brings home food from the Middle School and we eat that.” I knew that the brother was not receiving one of our backpacks so I asked what kind of food he was bringing home. He said, “When they have extra cereal at school, he brings that home and we all eat that.”
I completely believe the Lord set this conversation up because that family HAD to have those last 2 spots! Immediately I filled out the permission forms and gave them to him. I told him what they were for. His eyes were big and bright and he said, “Oh, thank you, thank you!” As he was putting them in his book bag he stopped and said very slowly and hesitantly, “My mama, my mama gonna, my mama gonna ‘preciate this.”
I had to leave the room because I could not control my tears. This backpack program is intended to bless the lives of children but oh, the blessings “I” am receiving! As we step out on faith this week packing 100 bags, I want you to know that I ‘preciate it.”
My friend told me that as a parent he got a “double blessing” because he got to see the Lord at work in his daughter’s life and the blessing of helping to feed local hungry children.”
Actually there was a triple blessings going on here, a trifecta if you will: in addition to the above the kids filled their little bellies with food from Jesus. (This program is administered anonymously, and the children don’t know where it’s coming from, other than they are told Jesus helped send it to them.)
Hmmm… Stop and rest and meditate on this for a moment will you.
Selah…
I’m sure Jesus “‘preciate’s it!” Isn’t it time to start your program? How ’bout today?
Proverbs 19:17
He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will reward him for what he has done.