World Hunger

A generous man will himself be blessed,
for he shares his food with the poor.

Proverbs 22:9

Shelby Mc. sent this little tale to me. It reminds me to be an active part of the body of Christ. I read somewhere that the world doesn’t have a food shortage problem. It has a food distribution problem. There’s plenty of food for all. It’s just that some of us have most of it, while others have none. The statistics for the number of people who died today from hunger related illnesses are staggering. My mind cannot even begin to comprehend this.

I know you are all probably very conscientious givers to hunger relief. Probably much more so than I. I am glad to be a part of a church that actively gives to world hunger relief. If your church has a hunger relief fund, please give generously. If not, ask your church leadership about starting one.

There are many ways to give locally, too. Most of us have food pantries and/or soup kitchens in our towns. Their needs are always great. We have a wonderful testimony from our GA program. Last year our girls collected $497.00 for our local food pantry during our World Hunger emphasis. When our GA director contacted the food pantry to let them know we had a donation for them, the lady at the food pantry said, “I have been asking God to send the money for our last grocery bill, which is here on my desk. The bill is for $497.00.” Ain’t God good!! He used a group of little girls to answer this prayer!

Many churches in our town collect monthly for the food pantry. If your church isn’t doing this, ask your church leaders about starting a program. Volunteer to be the person to deliver the food to the food pantry once a month. Also, many grocery stores have a collection box for food pantries. Ask if your grocery store has one. If so, buy a couple of extra cans of food when you shop, and drop them in the collection box on your way out of the store.

Probably the easiest way to donate is to contact your local food pantry, get their mailing address, and send them a check.

Food pantries not only need food and monetary donations, they need on-site volunteers to distribute the food and help keep the building clean and organized. Contact your food pantry. I am sure they have a place for you to serve. This is a great place to volunteer with your older children, too!

One great global relief program is the World Hunger Fund. 100 percent of your donation, every penny, goes for food. The Southern Baptist Convention covers the administrative costs of the program. A very simple way to donate to this fund is by dropping a donation in the World Hunger Fund jar found on the counter of most Life-Way stores. A few cents, dug from your pocket or the bottom of your purse, can provide a meal for a family in a third world country. To learn more, here’s a link: http://worldhungerfund.com/
You can even print a label to make a soup can hunger collection bank. I am going to make one of these for our home. I hope to encourage everyone to put a few coins in the can everyday.

Please give generously to the hunger relief program of your choice.
May the Lord bless you as you serve as His hands and feet!

Here’s the tale from Shelby:

A Godly man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, “Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.”

The Lord led the man to two doors. He opened one of the doors, and the man looked in.

In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the man's mouth water.

The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms. Each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But, because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.
The man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.

The Lord said, “You have seen Hell.”

They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the man's mouth water.

The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking.

The man said, “I don't understand.”

“It is simple,” said the Lord. “It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. The greedy think only of themselves.”