Helping the Poor

Transcript

Up front, I just want to say this subject is just about me. By no means am I looking out at anybody else or making any accusations about any way we donate or anything else. This is just something that I'm personally dealing with. As we know, as an ecclesia, we do a great job reaching out to help those within the brotherhood. We read in Deuteronomy 15 verses 7 to 8, if to be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within thy gates, and thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shalt thine hand from thy poor brother. Thou shalt open thy hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend sufficient for his need, and that which he wanteth. And truly, as an ecclesia and all the ecclesiastes I've been associated with, you can see that this does happen quite often very well. We do look out for each other very well. But this topic tonight is about people outside in the world. Others that we don't know, people that we come across, and things of that nature. And I don't know what it's like where all of you live, but I live right next to Boston, right north of Boston, in a very busy city area, and we see people on the corners constantly all the time. And we run into them in many areas, going into a shopping center in many areas. We run into these people, and for the most part, it's kind of easy to just reach out and give them a dollar or two, but there are times when my mind goes in a place where it shouldn't on these situations. And being in this kind of an area, you run into different challenges. I know for myself, I spend a lot of time going back and forth to Boston Medical Center, and I'm sure you've all heard about Molina Cas and Mass Ave, the intersection, and it is full of homeless people and drug addicts roaming the streets. And it's one of those areas, like what Claudette was saying, you kind of get nervous around them because you're not sure if you roll down your window if it's going to be safe because they're unpredictable. And you know, they've even been incidents where people have fallen in front of cars and there have been a couple of deaths in that area. So it's a scary place to want to roll down your window and to make a donation. And for me personally, it tends to put a judgmental view in my mind when I look at these people that I'm not giving my money to somebody like this to help support this habit. And those are wrong thoughts in my mind in that sense, because I shouldn't be judging why these people are homeless or why they have these situations, but it's just something that comes to my mind. And to get you to fully understand that little background on me, I've never, I mean, I shouldn't I have not known anything about God until I was 19 years old. I was not raised in the truth. And then my wife met me. We met one another. We started dating. She introduced me to God. And I've learned a lot of lessons from that point on. But the problem is when you're young, you don't fully absorb many things right off the bat. It takes a while to truly get a grasp on scripture and the things and the responsibilities that we have. So I came from an alcoholic family. I came from a family where there were no real morals preached. It was survival of the fittest. And that mindset sets in that it's all self, all looking off of self and not worried about anybody else. And that mindset can cause me to respond sometimes before I even know what I'm saying, because that old man that's inside tends to creep out, even though we've been baptized, that old man can creep back out on us and to put us in a situation where we really shouldn't if we're trying to glorify God. So that's a little bit of my background and how I come up out these things. And we know in Proverbs 28, first 27, it says he that giveth to the poor shall not lack, but he that hitheth his eyes shall have many a curse. So there are many times that I would kind of shy away from giving out and I would kind of walk away and not really hand out. And when I was young, one of my first jobs was working in friendly ice cream and ice cream shop. And I started out the bottom with cleaning and washing dishes and slowly worked my way out to the front where you started earning tips and earning tips changed your whole income level because you really didn't mind working hard. I always came from a working hard generation. I know nothing about working hard and moving quickly. That's just my makeup in life. But you go out there and you work hard all day and you get the end of the shift, you end up making more money in tips than you did in your paycheck or salary. So it felt great to earn this money. But the problem was I became self-centered with that attitude because I would in turn go out when I was dating my wife, go out to restaurants and other places. And I was really cheap with the tip because I said, you know, I worked so hard for this. I'm not just giving this money away. And of course, that is the wrong attitude that we should have. And that's what God is saying. If we're going to look out for poor people and we're not going to give to them, we're going to judge them, we're going to hold back from these poor people, they're going to cause you problems in your life. And so it was. We struggled for many years raising our children. And that's just the fact it was that it was difficult. We didn't have the best of jobs, but we survived, but provided. But he kept us on that edge of struggling because, and I believe now in hindsight, is the attitude that was portrayed within me of not being willing to reach out and to give to others when I really should have, because I still had that self-centered mindset that, you know, kind of controlled a lot of my life before I learned to turn that around and to stop looking inward and look outward at others. And so that was a challenge for me to go through these things. And, you know, we understand that when we drive down the street and we see people looking for someone for a handout, we don't know their life. We don't know their circumstance. We don't know why they're there. There are people who choose to be homeless. They enjoy it. There are people homeless to means that aren't even their own fault. And of course, we know there are many mentally ill people out there that are struggling in the streets as well to survive. So to me, when you're not giving to those people, you're holding back from the Lord. And I think that's what the Lord taught me. So as soon as we started giving out better tips, as soon as we started making better donations to the Ecclesia and all these things that were going on in our minds, what do you know? Things change in our lives. Circumstances change. Bonuses came in. Salaries were increasing. We were starting to live a little more comfortably. As the Lord says, if you hold back from the poor, I'm going to hold back from you. But if you donate and reach out what you have and when the time was necessary, he will replace those things for you. That's what we know. We learn to life and all the things that he shows us that he will guide us and he will direct us. Now, all this today leads up to a story or not a story, but an event that happened to me back in the spring. Now, I've worked real hard over the years to overcome these issues and to put the right time out to make the donations and to help where I can. I mean, and as many times it's so easy to just roll down the window and hand it out and so forth. And you feel good when you get to help somebody, that means. But one day I was out for a walk and since, you know, most, you know, I was paralyzed for a while and recovering from paralyzed, I could finally walk and get around again. I've gotten into walking really well and I truly enjoyed walking and coming from paralyzed to a walking state is a huge impact in my life. And I go out for long walks and enjoy myself when I go out for walks because I can. So I like there's a rail trail that cuts through our city and other cities going north. And I like to walk and get on at a certain end at the Malden River airline, which is two and a half miles from the house to walk out there just to get on the trail. And I walk it back towards the casino in Everett where I walk through the front courtyard of the casino. I know I don't go in, I'm not interested in going in, but the grounds are beautiful around the outside. But on this walk, I came into Malden Center and I just crossed the main street and off to my left, I noticed an encampment and I said, this is odd, this, this, I mean, they're pretty much in the weeds. This encampment, you see a lean to, you see items collected off to the side and you see clothes on, hung with clothes on, you know, a very strange sight for me to see. And as I was approaching, a man and a woman came out of the lean to. He was, you know, he's probably an older guy, 60s, 70s, 60s, I'd say more 60s. She was younger, 30s, 40s. And the woman says to me, sir, by chance, would you have some money, a few dollars that we could go get some breakfast? And there it was, right there. And then the instant result, oh, sorry, I can't help you. That man inside just creeps out before you even know what happened. The words were already out and I'm walking along. And I said to myself, after I got down the trail, just a few more steps down, I just blew it. That was wrong. I'm supposed to be witnessing for God. And here I am. I blew it right there. And then I said, you know, that's not right. It's not that I couldn't give her anything. I actually just stopped at the ATM. I took out money to donate to the Ecclesia for our Sunday meeting, so I could have given them that. I'm sure the Ecclesia of God wouldn't have minded if I gave them that. Or even still, I could have stopped at another ATM and got more money out. And for some reason within me, that instant burst out, sorry, I can't help you came through. And I felt horrible. So I walked. I said, surely this is going to bite me in the backside come judgment. And I looked me up, turned around and looked and they were out of sight. They'd gone off and where it was is a very busy area, so I'd never be able to chase them down. Who knows where they were. So I kept walking. And as I was walking along the path, I said, I cannot leave this like this. This is I've done this in the past. I've come up to people. I said, no, I don't have it when I did. And I kept going. And that was wrong. And those things bothered me. But this one got to me really bad. So as I got about a little farther down the trail and remember, wait a minute, this is a supermarket, two, three blocks from me. I can do something about this. And I walked over to the supermarket and I filled a whole bag full of groceries of items that I think that it would that would be fun to help them out a little bit. And I took the groceries and I went back, walked back and they're not around. So I put it inside their lean to where they were. And I left and I'm praying to God that this food would be there for them when they get back. And I started praying that he would forgive me for my attitude, because I just made a big mistake in front, you know, with this whole situation. You know, I don't know if they got the food or not. I went by that place a week later and everything was gone. So one of three possibilities, they moved on the city, threw them out. Well, we all don't know if we entertain angels unaware. You have to think about these things and it goes through your mind. This happened to be one of those days where I just couldn't get this out of my mind. And I kept walking and walking. It was the day I got my longest walk in 17 miles, so I couldn't get it out of my mind. And I just walk and walk. So I finally got to a point where I realized it's getting late. I got to get home and get dinner ready for my lady when she comes home. I didn't realize the clock at the time because there was so much in my head that I couldn't let it go. And that's why I thought about this for the class, that sometimes we tend to look at others and judge them and instantly respond before we know what's going on. As we read in Proverbs 19 for today, 17, Proverbs 19, 17, we read the verses. He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord, and that which he have he giveth, and will he pay again. We should have pity on the poor. We should think about that. We should give out to them when we can, because just as easily as their poor, if I have to continue in the wrong attitude in life, God could have changed my life. I could be that person. Jeanne and I could be those people. That's up to the Lord what happens. We read through scripture. We see the examples given in scripture, but God changes people's lives if their attitude is out of line. And it's me. This is how it is for me. My mind was in the wrong place when this all came about. So I, you know, thought about this a lot and I do what I can. And you would think that the lesson sunk in.

Lo and behold, a few weeks ago, I'm going, it's cold out and when I can't walk outdoors, I go to a shopping mall and I walk indoors. On my way to a shopping mall, I decided to stop at Walmart quick to grab a few groceries. And when I came out, there was a man who obviously was homeless and there was a woman who was dressed pretty good, but she had a sign. And I got myself all in a tither about it. And I just kind of moved over to the next lane and just kept going and saying, no, if I give the ham, she's going to claim that she shouldn't deserve it. She looks like she got nice clothes on. Again, I started the judgment. I got to the mall. I got my walk in and I realized that, you know, that was a mistake again. I mean, not far from it. So it's something I know that I have a lot to work out in mind. And it just so happens that day that when I got done with my walk, I had forgot something at Walmart and I went back over there to get something. And lo and behold, they were both still there. So I was able to make up for that incident. So on my way back out, I was able to give the two of them whatever money I had in my pocket, I split it and gave half and half to each of them. So that try and help out somewhat, but it's the attitude in my mind is something that I'm working with that I have to, you know, it's something we live with. Jesus says, the pull you'll have with you always, and that we all should be giving out, helping all those that we can as we make these donations to others. And it's, it's a challenge for all of us to take for granted the things that we have and the situations that we live in, because, you know, it's, it's not so easy for others in the world. And within the brotherhood, it's easier to take care of each other. But yet when the kingdom comes, who are we going to be reaching out to? Isn't it not these people? Isn't God choose the poor of the world to confound everybody else? It's these people that will actually listen. And so by shunning them with the attitude of judging them based on their clothing and based on their looks or how they're conducting themselves is a mistake that we make is we, like I said, we don't know where they came from. We don't know their situation. Will they accept God's word? That's up to them, but we have to work our best as we can each day to reach out and to help all those that we can. Because, you know, sometimes I have it, I have it. If I don't, I don't, that's just the way it goes. But it's when you have it, I have to be willing to let go of the fears, let go of these things and to give it. And that's something that I've been working very hard on trying to overcome these feelings because, you know, it's, there are people out there who just truly need the help and especially in the society we live in, in the world that we have, you know, homeless is a big thing because of the cost of living around. There's a lot of people that just can't survive on their own and they can't make things on their own. And we're also full of right now, full of a lot of immigrants who came here. And again, we can start judging if you want to start judging people, but that's wrong, people are people, maybe God brought them this place, we shouldn't be judging that, but we should be willing. If we have, we should donate because we have no problem doing that in the brotherhood, but yet when it comes to the world, we've got to be willing just as well to do that because they probably need it much more than those in the brotherhood sometimes. So these are the things that are going through my mind. And, you know, I have a verse in first, second, second Corinthians, I lost all those notes, let me just look it up. Second Corinthians chapter nine and verse seven, we read every man according as he purposeth in his heart. So let him give not grudgingly or of necessity for God love with a cheerful giver. So it's something that we do not out of pity, not out of judgment, because we want to reach out and to help. We want to give when we can, we're all going to make mistakes. We get, when you read through the New Testament, the apostle Paul gives us a lot of lessons. You have the truth, you were taught the truth. You have this understanding. Why are you going back to the old ways? And that's what happens sometimes within me. I mean, because I, I wasn't blessed with the Sunday school rising up in the Sunday school, getting all that learning and teaching. I have a lot of old baggage from the old life that I had before it came to the truth, that if I'm not doing my readings, if I'm not focusing on what's true and writing God's words, the old man comes back into play and looking for any opportunity to poke out there and to cause problems. And that's, and that's what happens to me sometimes. And I have to overcome that. I know I come at things from a different point of view a lot when I speak. And that's the reason why, because I come from a different background. And I know I'm not the only one who's coming from the outside. And yet we all can use that education of what we learned in the truth and where we came from to preach and to teach, because that's all we're going to need to do when we go out to people who are in the world who need to learn about God. Because if you're raised in the truth, that's all you know. And that's awesome. You're blessed. You ought to count that blessing. But when you're not raised in the truth, you don't quite understand what other people have to go through to learn about God and to be guided and to receive these blessings. So that's, you know, someone coming from the outside, we learn, we should be learning to use our life as an example and to preach and to teach others. I know I've reached out to many people who aren't in the truth. And I try, but some will listen and some won't, but that's the way it is. So I've been trying to, you work that in as well, when I try and help someone else and I give them some money and I have an opportunity, I mean, driving by, it's kind of hard to hold up a conversation when you're handing money out the window because you got everybody behind you beeping, but there are other times you're walking down the street and you have time to converse with somebody. And that's what I've been trying to work on is to be able to spend a little more time conversing to overcome these feelings. So, you know, for these people that are out there and, you know, it's a struggle that I go through, you know, I feel good about myself and that I'm, I'm aware of it and I'm working on it and something that I have to continue trying hard on and, you know, God is good. God has blessed me abundantly. He, you know, he has shown me a lot. He's chastised me when I needed it and he's also blessed me in many other areas. He's guided me and he gives me words of wisdom to speak, you know, and I know when I get that feeling inside of me, that's what he wants me to talk about. So that's what I'm presenting here for class tonight is, you know, the things that we need to consider when we come into these situations, it's not always about us or the fears that we have. We're going to use wisdom, not going to put ourselves in an unsafe situation, but trust in your heart. If your heart's telling you to make that donation and you have it, make that donation and to reach out and help others. And that's the kind of attitude God's looking for us. I came from a family of seven, of two sisters and four brothers with me. And I look at my family now and I see the difference of a life in the truth and a life in the world. I've tried over the years. We've all tried to talk to them, but nobody really wants to listen because they're too involved in the world. So I look at myself and say, why me? Why out of this whole family has the Lord chosen me? And it's just like scripture. When you read through scripture, there are many people in scripture that are chosen by God from their birth or even before they're born or before God's even introduced them to their lives. And I look in hindsight at my life and realize that's a blessing I have received. God knows my heart. My heart's evidently different than everybody else in my family. And he has had his eye on me from the beginning. There are many situations that I've been in that frankly, I shouldn't be alive. Some of the foolish things I did as a young teenager and the foolish things I got myself involved in. But yet he worked it out for me and he guided me and he brought me to the truth through my wife. And that is the blessing that we receive. And it's something important for me to look back and look out at others and trying to talk to them and share things, truth with them. Because, you know, sometimes your family listens, sometimes they won't. But you got to you got to keep trying. And that's all I'm trying to say tonight is we have to when we go through these situations, we've got to try. We've got to look at it. For me, again, I'm only speaking to me. I have to overcome these things and do the best you can to help out.

So, I mean, that's pretty much what I have tonight. If somebody wants to voice up and add in anything, please do. But I mean, that's that's the mindset that I have in my head that was running through me as I was going through this.