Poverty: Much More Than It's Definition

Days here in West Montgomery can often seem the same. There are community needs to the right and the left with no real end in sight. One of the biggest reasons that people are unable to break free from their circumstances is that they are chained to Poverty. Poverty… It is a bleak word that shows very little hope in having a bright future. The Webster dictionary defines Poverty as - “the state of being extremely poor” but I believe that the meaning runs so much deeper. 

When we think of people living in poverty, we think of physical poverty and that they do not have enough money to provide themselves and their family a safe place to live, clean clothing and enough to eat. These are basic needs we see here at Mercy House and are working hard to meet all of them. We are so thankful for the clothing donations that we are able to pass on to our neighbors. The daily meals we serve and the groceries we provide are keeping families fed. Our laundry services and showers are a blessing to those experiencing homelessness. We are grateful that God has sent people to provide resources for us to use to meet so many immediate needs.

But what I want to share with you today is that we also see an emotional and a spiritual poverty that are just as paralyzing to someone trying to break free from the chains that hold them captive. What does emotional and spiritual poverty look like? Well, for our neighbors here, it is living in a state of being forgotten, lost, powerless, unwanted and unloved. Our neighbors here can lose their purpose and their self worth. And when you no longer have hope in a future that holds more than a life of isolation and despair, there is very little left. For whatever path has led them to this place in life, we know that God is calling us to remind them that they are seen. 1 Peter 3:12 “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayer”. God knows the number of hairs on their head (Luke 12:7) and He has known them before they were formed in their mother’s womb (Isaiah 44:24). He knows their history, their hearts and their minds and still He loves them with an everlasting love that endures forever. (1 Peter 3:12) God wants them to have constant reminders that He can forgive anything and that His grace is sufficient for everyone. (2 Corinthians 12:9)  It is God’s desire that they know that He has not forgotten them and that He still has a plan and a purpose for their life (Jeremiah 29:11) and it is the same purpose that He has for every single one of His children… to love God and love others. (Mark 12:30-31)

And so we are building relationships with the people of Washington Park and we are not only sharing what we have been given in resources but we are sharing God’s Word that is full of promises about His love and forgiveness, His grace and mercy and His plan to use all His children for His glory. Poverty is so much more complicated than a mere definition. It’s penetrates further than hunger and all the way to the heart and mind. Our efforts in the war on poverty must be just as strong so that we might make room for God’s Word to dissolve the hurt and the lies and bring forth a renewed spirit - a spirit that knows God’s love, draws off His power, thrives in being redeemed and is determined to live out His purpose. We are sharing many kinds of life saving information here on Council street, one relationship at a time. 

God Bless,

Pastor Ken Austin