“If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord— and he will repay you!” Proverbs 19:17 NLT
I recently saw a post that a member of my church made on her WhatsApp status. It sent a cold chill down my spine while reading it. She had loaned someone some money and the person refused to pay it back. So, she started cursing.
I felt her pain because she probably needed the money to take care of some urgent needs and now, she couldn’t get it. This was the best way she could manage the disappointment.
I decided long ago to only loan money I could afford to lose. This way, if the person lacked the integrity to pay back, it would not bother me.
Her post also made me wonder why people decide, with full intention, not to pay back. And the answer to that is this; they’re human. Only God can be fully trusted to keep His promises.
The lack of integrity of one person should not hinder you from helping another. This help doesn’t have to be financial. As the anchor scripture says, you move to the “lender status” when you help the poor. Such acts for God don’t go unrewarded. And unlike the borrower in my church member’s life, God can be trusted.
How can we become lenders to the poor through our work?
Sometimes you may not be financially buoyant, but you’re engaged in something every day. To know how you help the poor, assess what you do and ask yourself how your work helps others.
Anyone who lacks sufficiency in something is poor in that thing. So, people who need more sufficiency in money are considered financially impoverished. But also look at what this poverty causes; the opportunities poor people lack access to, etc. Making even a fraction of these opportunities available to a small fraction of poor people already makes you a lender. And God always pays back.
So, this is a call not to see your work as a transaction but as a calling you’ve been empowered to do. You’ve been empowered so that you can empower others. And this will not go unnoticed by God.
“I want to feel like I’m doing some good in the world. Looking at my work, I help others in the following ways…”
Some are in positions to solve world hunger, and some want to ensure that one person has food on their table. Both are lenders in the eyes of God.
In what small way are you helping those in need through your work? Write it down, and you’ll feel a deep sense of purpose for what you do.
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