Did you ever wonder or ask yourself, or maybe ask God, what breaks His heart (or, what does he care about)? I saw a quote a few years ago that has stayed with me , and it goes something like this.
"May my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God"- anonymous
You don't have to go far to see what God's heart cares about. He tell us in His word that He sent Jesus not for the well but for the sick. Those that are lost and need Him. Another area that breaks God's heart that we see in His Word is the poor, needy, orphaned and widowed.
"Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you."- James 1:27 (NLT)
Another version says :
"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 (NIV)
Job goes on to say this...
"If I have denied the desires of the poor or let the eyes of the widow grow weary, if I have kept my bread to myself, not sharing it with the fatherless--"-Job 31: 16-17
Psalm 146:9 says "The LORD watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked."
Perhaps Jesus put it best when He said in Matthew 25: 36 :
"I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."
And here Paul, in talking to the Galatians , says that the apostles agreed he should go and preach the gospel to the Gentiles but he adds :
"All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do."- Galatians 2 :10
I love what Paul says right there. The Apostles of Jesus supported him in taking the gospel to the Gentiles while they went to the Jews. But , their hearts were not only for that. Their hearts priority was also to "remember the poor" and this was the very thing Paul was "eager" to do. Wow. EAGER to remember the poor.
I think it's pretty clear what God calls for us to do. To take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world (neighbors, friends, family, workplace, and further) so that all His children that are lost may be found. And also, to care for the poor , children without fathers, widows who are alone and in need. This is the Heart of God!
In this world today, we are SO very blessed with so many ways to now be able to do this. Many times I hear things like "Well, you never know if you can trust that or this organization" or " I am not giving my money to them they probably don't give it to the poor anyway" . There is much skepticism and rightly so. Many do things in the name of Jesus but it is really for them or to be deceptive. However, there are many great and trusted organizations helping the poor and needy in Jesus' name! :-) Two that we know are very trust worthy are Compassion International and World Vision.
Through Compassion International, you can support or as I like to say "adopt" as many children from many poor countries in the world as you would like. You send them a certain amount of money, or more if you feel led too, and it goes directly to them. We have a child from Burkina Faso and he has been our spiritual son for many years now. I would like to support more children and hopefully in time we will. It is such a joy to receive his letters, hear about his studies, his faith, his family, and how our little contribution makes a HUGE difference to him! It is not to boast in what we do...it is to praise God for this kind of ministry that can connect us to Bilgo all the way across the world and enable us to support him in Jesus' name.
http://www.compassion.com/
Another great ministry is World Vision. This is a broader ministry as far as where you would like to put your tithe and help out. What they do is , the match or double your support. I forget exactly how it goes to be honest but I know that if you send in a certain amount it doubles or triples in amount so that it is being used in a mighty way in Jesus name to help those in need! You can choose where you want to help. This kind of ministry is great for those of us who maybe cannot do world missions right now...but we can still be using the money God has given us for good. You can also sponsor a child through World Vision.
http://www.worldvision.org/
I am sure there are many many other great ministries out there in our country and in our communities. I praise God that He has touched the hearts of these leaders and that they have acted in faith in starting these ministries for Him and His people in need around the world. This is His heart in action! We have to be His hands and feet in this world. For some, that may mean actually physically going on missions around the world or in our country and being his physical hands and feet. For others, it means being able to support those ministries in a financial way. Yet for all of us, we can be his hands and feet right in our own neighborhoods, workplaces, families, circle of friends...etc. We can be used by God right where we are. Even if you stay at home with your children...that is His calling for you right now and that is where He can and will use you. In your kids lives to raise them up in the Lord. Either way, however He calls you or wants to use you...it is all for the things that "break His heart". The things God cares about most.
May we always seek Gods Heart and allow Him to use us to bless and care for those He loves...
In The Love Of Christ Jesus,
M & M
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