Monday, 29 July 2013

Blessed is the one who considers the poor (Psalm 41 v 1a)


I had a lovely moment of realization today about the truth of Psalm 41 v 1a. We were out with our friends from Utah, boating in a reservoir near to Salt Lake City, up in the foothills of the Rockies. The surroundings were beautiful, with mountains rising up around us, and variably blue skies or fascinating cloud formations. Whilst some of the group were enjoying tubing and wake-boarding, I sat at the front of the boat, enjoying the views, the sun, and the relaxing time.

At first I felt guilty about having such a good time, as I thought of people like Gasha, Free, Tukano and the street kids in Rwanda. ‘They never get opportunities like this’ was all I could think, and I wondered if it was OK to be enjoying myself whilst so many in the world are not. How I would love to find a way to let some of those guys experience some of what I had today.

But then I remembered the first line of Psalm 41, and my thought process moved on to recognizing that it is OK, and that indeed today was a blessing from God. Just because I have met with the poor, and have their stories in my mind, doesn’t mean I have to be sad on their behalf all the time. God wants us to have good times, especially when we spend time ‘considering the poor’ in various ways.

I’d still love to find more ways to bless those who have so little, and will continue to have that as my life aim, but in the meantime having taken that on board my thought for today, I got in the water with the others, smiling and laughing, and thanking God for life.

Am hoping and praying that the rest of the CRED teams, who also considered the poor, are feeling equally blessed.

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