One day, as I was about parking in front of my house, I saw a young boy ran towards me. I can guess his age to be around 14. He was hawking mangoes. He ran to me asking I buy his mangoes. I told him I was not interested.

The next he said touched me: "Daddy, If I don't sell all these mangoes, I won't eat". That statement hit my bones straight. I knew his mother must have told him sales determined his feeding that day.

Quickly, I reached for my purse and gave him money. I did not bother taking the mangoes from him. The boy was grateful. A part of me was joyful for meeting someone's need but another part of me was sad that a young boy was living in poverty with his family.  

One of the things the scripture teaches is that we help the poor and show compassion to them. The bible did not teach us to despise or talk to them anyhow. We need not define who a poor man is but you and I know that any man lacking basic resources to feed, cloth and shelter himself is a poor man. United Nations fixed the poverty line as someone living below $2.15 per day.

Poverty is a reality in today's world despite the numerous opportunities available for wealth. In Matthew 26:11, Jesus says, "You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me"( NLT).

I am not talking about laziness induced poverty. A lazy man should find a job no matter how little. However, there are hardworking people whose poverty is economy induced. They labour but have little or nothing to show for it. Some are poor because they do not have access&certain privileges that others have.

As children of God, we must have in plans to help poor people by empowering them to become wealthy not just to remain poor. I have discovered a secret. If you help a poor person, God steps in for you and open doors. I am yet to see someone who helps poor people genuinely that doesn't experience open doors.

Proverbs 19:17 says, "If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD— and he will repay you!"( NLT)

Right from the old testament when God instituted the tithing order, what he had in mind wasn't just provisions for the Levites only but for the poor, needy,widows and orphans as well. Once in three years, the tithe of the whole year in all Israel was given to the poor.

“At the end of every third year, bring the entire tithe of that year’s harvest and store it in the nearest town.Give it to the Levites, who will receive no allotment of land among you, as well as to the foreigners living among you, the orphans, and the widows in your towns, so they can eat and be satisfied. Then the LORD your God will bless you in all your work."( Deut 14:28-29). 

If God love the poor to the extent of giving them a portion from the sacred tithe of the people, how do we think we can ignore them and still be in his good books in that regard?

After Paul was given the right hand of fellowship by the leading apostles, one of the things they instructed him to do was to keep helping the poor( Gal.2:10) Though he was a missionary who needed help and support from the people, yet, Paul was big on helping the poor. 

As a ministry, we have children whose fees we pay through the support of brethren. You'll be shocked at the meagre amount their parents cannot afford. If you look around, you will see a family you can lift out of poverty, a child you can send to school and someone you can empower to become wealthy. Do this today and see God intervene in your life.