Skinny Souls: Blog Action Day
October 15, 2008
Miriam Webster defines Poverty as:
1. a : the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions b : renunciation as a member of a religious order of the right as an individual to own property
2 : SCARCITY, DEARTH
3 a : debility due to malnutrition b : lack of fertility
The most heart wrenching picture of poverty is an Ethiopian child with a swollen belly and flies rimming his eyes, or the sobbing mother holding her listless, starving infant. Perhaps when you think of poverty, you picture a homeless man, dirty and ragged, petting a mangy dog on a cold and lonely street corner.
These are all vivid pictures of poverty, but are not the type of poverty I’d like to discuss today for Blog Action Day. The poverty I have in mind falls under the definition of dearth in the above entry~ spiritual poverty.
Why Spiritual Poverty Matters
As a society, we tend to focus on the physical needs of our bodies. Don’t believe me? Try fasting for a week or go without fluids for a single day. That physical need becomes all-consuming. We toil to relieve the physical discomfort of our bodies above all else. However, the Bible repeatedly warns us against dangers of spiritual poverty, saying that poverty that affects the body is insignificant when compared to poverty of the soul. The body lasts only for a few years, the soul is eternal.
Spiritual Poverty in Action
We get so caught up in the business of our lives, and our own six feet of personal space that we neglect the needs of others, even when they cry out for help. Our neighbor suffers in silence through overwhelming depression, our children feel alone and lost, our spouses long for intimacy and affection- grieving silently for a relationship that is dying. Yet we continue on each day, wrapped up in the headache that will not go away, the mortgage payment that’s past due, the dirty dishes in the sink, the new boat the guy across the street just brought home… how tired we are.
This behavior conditions us to look past the needs of others, look out for number one. It dulls the pain of seeing a four hundred pound man in the grocery store eying the fresh produce and feeling torn between healthy foods and the baked goods just opposite the carrots. We no longer see his excessive weight as a symptom of his pain. His layers of flesh have lost the ability to portray his effort to escape the unrelenting emotional pain he suffers day after day. We only see the fat man indulging his gluttony, and mutter, “He should get off that scooter and walk. Someone should take those cookies away from him. Hey Fatso, how about a salad?”
It’s easier to poke fun and build up calluses around our hearts than it is to share in someone else’s pain. We don’t want to identify; relating to other’s faults is admitting that we ourselves are flawed.
The Solution
Ending spiritual poverty begins with admitting that the world is bigger than you and me. The Earth does not revolve around our needs and wants. There is a bigger plan~ and a Master Designer. Giving yourself to the needs of others ensures that your own needs are met, but the funny thing is that after you establish a pattern of putting others first, your needs are no longer a priority.
We each have the potential to make a difference in the lives of thousands of people. The same amount of energy that it takes to meet our own needs can be combined with the energy of others to sustain thousands of souls. Add to that the blessing and power of God, and the possibilities are staggering.
Seek God.
Learn to love yourself by loving others.
Soften your hearts and don’t be afraid to feel the pain of those around you. Pain reminds you that you truly are still alive. Growth does not happen without pain.
The best blessings in life require tremendous struggle and pain. Childbirth, death, marriage.. change.
Comments
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Jamie Simmerman
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Matthew Dryden
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Lance
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Jamie Simmerman
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Marelisa
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Jamie Simmerman
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Jamie Simmerman
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Wendi Kelly-Life's Little Insp
