Psalm 41 - Be Kind to the Poor

Verse 1

NIV

1 Blessed are those who have regard for the weak; the LORD delivers them in times of trouble.

NLT

1 Oh, the joys of those who are kind to the poor! The LORD rescues them when they are in trouble.

HCS

1 Happy is one who cares for the poor; the Lord will save him in a day of adversity.

There are a lot of verses in the Bible that tell us to care for the poor, the oppressed, the downtrodden, the widows and orphans....

Rather than list several verses with instructions on caring for these let me remind you of Jesus' words in Matthew 25

35 For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or without clothes and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You?' 40 "And the King will answer them, 'I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.'

Hmmmm.... maybe I"m being lazy, but it seems pretty self-explanatory to me. Each of us needs to find ways that we can live our lives caring for the weak. Find ministries in the community that you can be involved in. Start a ministry at church that meets the needs of others. That doesn't mean think of something for the pastors to do. If God gives you a great idea of how to minister to others YOU need to do it. Your pastor can give you guidance or direction or help you think through logistics or whatever, but YOU need to do it. Gather others around you to help you and go for it. Or find people in your neighborhood to minister to. Visit nursing homes. Feed the hungry. Visit the prisons. 

I hate to make a list because I don't want you to think it is an exhaustive list. You will think of things that I won't think of. Let the Holy Spirit guide you. Make a difference in your part of the world.

Oh...and then you have a perfect audience to share the Gospel with.