He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. Luke 1:53
“When I feed the poor, they call me a saint, but when I ask why the poor are hungry, they call me a communist.”
Hélder Câmara (1909-1999) as recounted in Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010) reading for September 22.
I will turn my attention to famous Brazilian saints for the next two weeks as my travels will take me to Brazil for the third time (2019, 2022, and 2025) from 15-29 June 2025.
My mission with fellow GTP staff members, Rafael Bandeira (from Brazil) and Paula Mendoza (from Guatemala), is to multiple stewards in many settings and identify skilled workers to activate a task force to form a peer accountability group like ECFA in USA to help strengthen churches and ministries with standards.
Today’s quote got my attention. Worldwide I see people honor the service of the needy while simultaneously avoiding taking responsibility for their care despite biblical commands to show love in this way.
And it hit me. That’s the message of today’s Scripture. God cares for the hungry, through His faithful servants, while those who aim only to care for themselves, always end up empty. Don’t let that be you!
In caring for the poor, I am not talking about handouts that create dependency but hand ups that build disciples. I am talking to those who think they own whatever they possess when God owns everything. Listen up.
I write not because of what I want from you but because of what I want for you. I don’t want you to go away empty. I want you to experience the satisfaction of filling the hungry (with food that satisfies).
Where do you fit in this picture? Don’t call me a communist. Call me fearless to ask “why” questions. Why do so many people call themselves Christians and not live how Christ called us to live?
Don’t call me a saint. Don’t call me a communist. Don’t call me crazy or radical. Call me convinced that when God’s people in any setting give Him what they have, needs get met and God gets the glory.
In case you missed it, GTP released the Palmful of Maize numbers for three years. See for yourself here. The vision has engaged over a million children in Malawi and the poorest of the poor of the world are solving their own hunger problems.
Read the stats. See for yourself. How have the hungry been fed in many districts of Malawi? Short answer. Over a million children have chosen to give God what they have.