Thankful & stirred up

Confession time? I used to be a huge Angelina Jolie fan...that pesky Tomb Raider movie did it, mainly b/c I loved the video game in high school...when Notes from My Travels came out I purchased it in part b/c she wrote it and in part b/c I had heard she was getting involved with UNHCR and relief work. Honestly, aside some rough times in middle school I never really had to worry about not having a home or food.

I remember reading her book shortly before I got pregnant with my daughter and being shocked at how little some people had...sure I knew poverty like that existed, but somehow it never really hit home for me until then. These people weren't just out there, they were real people with real names and real (often heart breaking) stories. Though her book wasn't written from the perspective of a Christian, I got brief sense of God's heart for the destitute because of that book.

A couple years later as my home crumbled and my heart broke I read the book of Ruth for the first time and I saw God's care (again) for the poor. This time it was hitting home on a whole new level. But God met me there, He provided for me and my children just as He always has.

All over the Old Testament there is an exhortation to remember what God has delivered the Israelites from, this theme is continued right on through the New Testament to today. God wants us to remember His deliverance...and His care for His children. His mercy towards us should spur us on and inspire us to show mercy towards others.

There are millions of people around the world today that don't have something to eat or clothes that will keep them warm, and here I sit at my laptop - my hunger is satisfied and I have clothes to wear. He has more than provided, and for that I am extremely grateful.

How then, ought I to live? How can I show His kindness to others? Can I donate to build a couple schools? Can I cut back on Christmas and birthday presents for my family in order to send a package to a child who would not have Christmas otherwise? Can I serve my local church family in some way, can I rejoice in how God has cared for them this year? Can I spare $42 to give water to three people for the rest of their lives? Can How ought I pray?

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