THURSDAY, October 15 (Teresa of Avila)

Psalm 18:1-20. The roots of the mountains shook; they reeled because of his anger....He reached down from on high and grasped me...he rescued me because he delighted in me.

An admonition to "Eradicate Global Poverty" saddened me; it sounded clinical and impersonal. "Global poverty" is a cause, something which doesn't seem to involve me personally. I prefer to think not of a global movement, but of helping one human being who is hungry, homeless, in need of being seen by another human being.

I often catch myself thinking of God in such an impersonal way. But in our faith, we see God both in the cosmic view and in the face of a human being. The same God who shook the mountains' foundations also "rescued me because he delighted in me."

Caring for other people requires more than acknowledgment of the great Creator God who makes the foundations of the mountains shake. This God asks us also to embrace, feed, heal, and see each other. Ours is a God who rescues us, one through the other. This is a God who delights not in global causes, but in the feeding of one particular hungry soul. Our God rescues and delights in us.

PRAY for the Diocese of Texas (Province VII, USA)

Ps * 18:21-50; Jeremiah 38:1-13; 1 Corinthians 14:26-33a, 37-40; Matthew 10:34-42

View the daily Lectionary Readings at Satucket.com.
Or view the Bible passages at Biblegateway.com.

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Oct 15, 2009 at 6:16 am

Written by Jay Mather,

Caring for people one-to-one is what Jesus did. We should do it, too. But it's also improtant to work for justice and peace in global terms because that affects many, many individual people. I feel we should do both.

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Oct 15, 2009 at 6:18 am

Written by Anonymous,

It's easier, I think, to relate to a single person than to a large group because we see the face of the one person. But I agree that both are necessary.

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Oct 15, 2009 at 11:56 am

Written by Joan Leland,

I also commented (to the editor: I didn't know about the blog) on the need for a global focus. As a volunteer for Heifer International (heifer.org) I am VERY aware of this!

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Oct 15, 2009 at 6:26 pm

Written by Kathleen Thompson,

I read about "global" things -- warming, hunger, poverty, etc. -- and tend to give up -- what can I do about these things? But to be able to minister to one hungry person, give a pair of gloves to someone who is cold, take canned goods to my local food pantry -- these are the ways that I can help just one person, and, in turn, embrace global needs, one person at a time. It is not that we do not care about global needs, but for most of us who cannot embark on a mission trip or contribute thousands of dollars for people in a foreign country -- well, it is our way of trying to do Christ's work on a small but very important level.

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Oct 15, 2009 at 8:15 pm

Written by Robert Lebby,

An the old man walked the beach at dawn, when he noticed a young girl ahead of him picking up starfish and flinging then into the sea. After watching the hopeless situation, the man decided to catch up so he could talk to the ambitious youth. "Why are you doing this?" he asked the girl. The answer was that the stranded starfish would die if left in the morning sun.

"Sweetheart," the old man began, "don't you know that there are thousands of starfish on this beach? And don't you know that this beach goes on for miles and miles? There is no way in the world you can save all those starfish! For all your efforts, it doesn't make any real difference."

The young girl looked thoughtfully at the starfish in her hand and then threw it to the safety of the waves, saying, "It makes a difference to this one".
------------------------------------------
I say, "Start with one, then another, and then yet another." Call it "Global" if you want, but start with someone in your own neighborhood or city before you look to help someone across the planet. If everyone helped one, think how many WOULD be helped.

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Oct 15, 2009 at 8:23 pm

Written by Robert Lebby,

And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Matthew 25:40

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