---
The
blessings of the Lord be with
you, Heartdwellers. He truly is with
us. And today He gave us an
instruction on charity.
I asked Him:
Lord, what do You want to speak
on today?
JESUS:
“I will defend
the widow and the orphan. I
will open My coffers and pour
out upon them the abundance of
My blessing. This is a season
when many go in want, while others
bask in luxury.
I
was reminded of that Scripture in
James: Religion that
God our Father accepts as pure
and faultless is this: to look
after orphans and widows in their
distress and to keep oneself from
being polluted by the world. James
1:27
“My
Brides, be on the lookout for those
in need this week and this
season. There is great depression
among the M poor
and lonely during this season. I
wish to touch them with My Love
through you. All around you
are those who cannot afford the
dinners that others prepare for all
week. Simply put, don't allow
yourself to be blind to your
neighbor’s distress.
Don't allow yourself to criticize their
lives or take exception with their
situation.”
I’d
like to add to that, too. We’ve
all got neighbors or different people
we know that are single or
divorced and they’re all by
themselves. If you’re planning on a
dinner, that might be a good
thing to invite them, as well.
“Many
of these have been abused and
rejected from childhood and their
only interaction with the world was
to get what they needed through
every deceptive means. They do
not understand family or love and
protection; they've had to fend for
themselves - fighting off hunger,
loneliness, the cold and hostility of
those around them. It is truly
sad and breaks My Heart to see
how children are treated-‐but the
issues go back through many
generations of drinking, crime and
drugs. These who are so looked
down upon have been rejected from
birth and do not have the
normal social skills of you who
have been raised by good parents.
“Were
I to show you what their
childhood was like, you would be
horrified. Many of these children
were tended only by My angels.
They went from dumpster to dumpster
looking for clothing and food while
their parents locked them out of
the house or were constantly gone,
either under the influence or walking
the streets looking for their next
fix.
“I
have put these poor ones before you
as an exercise in mercy. Many,
but not all, who came from middle
class and functional lower class families
do not understand the principles of
mercy and reaching out on a
personal level to the unfortunate.”
Clare:
I have to confess
there, that that’s so true of
us. When I was growing up with
my mother, she would really be
terribly harsh with people who were
on the streets, or who were
begging –very poor.
Very, very critical of them, and
say, “Why don’t they just go
get a job!” And that’s the
attitude of a LOT of the
working class.
“Their
own pursuits in the world have
hardened them against those who seem
to be lazy and failures, not caring
for themselves and their children.
Many of these are severely, mentally
damaged from childhood injuries and
cannot think for themselves in
pressured situations, so they go from
job to job, or crime to crime,
getting what they need to survive.
“You who have been born into fortunate
circumstances are meant to carry the
burdens of the poor with your
excess… not to fill your coffers
for the future, which you may not
even live to see. But to act
in My stead and supply for
their needs. In doing this, you
become the sons and daughters of
righteousness. The poor are My gift
to you, to help
you cultivate virtue.
“The
early church always provided for the
poor among them, always. This
they were taught from the very
beginning. The poor among you are
truly My gift, by which you
prove your faithfulness and love for
Me.
For
this is not for the ease of
others and for your affliction, but
by way of equality-at this present
time your abundance being a supply
for their need, so that their
abundance also may become a supply
for your need, that there may
be equality; as it is written, "HE WHO gathered
MUCH DID NOT HAVE TOO MUCH, AND
HE WHO gathered LITTLE HAD NO
LACK." 2 Corinthians 8:14-‐15
“To
pass up one of these needy ones
on the street without a stirring
in your heart and a dollar in
your hand is a symptom of the
lukewarm church. Busy about her
business
agendas,
the poor are an inconvenience and
impediment to her acquisition of
wealth.
At
this point I felt the need to
look up Isaiah 58. So many promises
are tied up in this passage of
Scripture: just decisions, protection,
guidance-‐that we will raise up
ancient foundations and repair broken
walls. Beautiful promises.
Interestingly,
this Scripture was given to me,
quickened to me at my conversion.
And you know, I think I know
why. I had a real tendency
toward a Religious spirit: fasting
and prayer, and doing all these
outstanding fasts and all these other
things that seemed to make other
people holy. At least, what I
was learning in my early days.
And I didn’t have a whole lot
of care for the poor. I was
more concerned about my own walk, my
holiness –I still
was very materialistic at my
conversion.
Now
that I look back on it I
remember, that my concern was more
with fasting, and getting word of
knowledge, a vision –moving
in the Gifts and healing. And
from an egotistical viewpoint –not
out of love for the Lord so
much, but to prove myself as a
good Christian, who operates in the
Gifts.
