What I've done is probably going to cause a lot of controversy amongst my readers.  Some of you guys may be shocked and angered.  You may call me a hypocrite, and you may say that what I've done is sacrilegious and blasphemous.  On the other hand, I think that a lot of you will be positive about what I have done, and you may even want to do this yourself. 

What I've done is cut up a Bible. 

Now before you start to feel indignant, I would like you to stay seated and keep reading what I have to say.  I did not cut up my Bible because I was angry with God or because I disagreed with things that the Bible has to say.  No, the reason I cut up my Bible was to make a point. 

I cut out every verse in the Bible that has to do with poverty and helping the needy.  The reason why I did this was partially to prove to myself exactly how much importance that God places on serving the less fortunate.  I also did this so that I could have tangible and physical evidence to show people and be able to honestly say, "Look at what our Bible is, at what our faith is, without us serving the poor and the destitute." 

I suspected that there would be many sections chopped out of the Bible after this experiment- big holes eradicated from God'sWord- but I was shocked to discover what was left of my Bible after I had removed the verses about helping the poor and the needy.  My Bible was completely tattered.  There was little left of its pages.  It was unreadable, unusable. 

When Christians do not serve the needy, we are not putting into practice what the Bible so strongly emphasizes that we need to do.  We are ignoring these huge sections of God's Word when we should be obeying them with every fabric of our lives.   

The Christian church today does not put nearly enough emphasis into service .  Don't get me wrong- some churches are focused on helping the needy in their communities and around the world, but most churches are more focused on other things.  These things are also important, but Christians too often overlook the needs of so many people across the globe, and that gives Christ a bad name.  There are people dying of hunger, thirst, lack of medical care, and poor sanitary conditions every single day.  There are so many people who are living without shoes or a home and who are going through life without an education.  This is a huge problem. 

As children of God, we should be following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, the One who said, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of Mine, you did for Me."  (Matthew 25:40, TNIV)  Service was so important to Jesus, and this is reflected throughout the Bible, in the New and Old Testaments. 

What makes me cringe is the fact that there are so many more secular efforts to feed the hungry and shelter the homeless than there are Christian efforts.  Why do the big rock stars who are into drugs and sex and worldly things do more for the poor than we as Christians- who are supposed to do what Jesus did and live how He lived on earth- do for the poor?  This puts Christians in a bad light when people think to themselves, "I'm doing more to help the hungry than the people who love God do.  Why would I want to be like them?"  This needs to change right now.

Over the next several weeks I am going to be expanding on this vitally important issue.  I am going to be talking about the greatest needs of the world today in regards to poverty.  I will also talk about what you can do as a Christian, right now, in your community and around the world.  Don't allow your faith in Jesus to be tattered and torn like my Bible because of the fact that you ignore one of His most important commands: to help those who are in need. 

Please leave your comments below or send me an email.  I want to hear your feedback about this.  What do you think about this topic?  Do you believe that the church has been greatly apathetic in regards to helping the poverty-stricken people throughout the world?  What do you think about my physical evidence (the ripped Bible)?  What do you plan to do to serve the needy in your community?
 

First off, I'd like to say... I'm sorry!  I haven't written more than one or two entries a week for the past month or so, and I really need to get my act back together and start writing.  My life has been extremely busy lately, but I am determined to get a grip.  I need to write more.  I need to post more. 

Another thing, if you want a small, mostly unheard of Christian agency to support, I would like to strongly recommend Reece's Rainbow.  It is an organization that helps raise grants to assist families that want to adopt children with physical and mental capabilities.  If you cannot afford to financially sponsor Reece's Rainbow, then you can also become a Prayer Warrior.  They will hook you up with a picture of a child and some information, and your duty is to pray over this child every day until they are adopted and given a permanent home. 

Who has been watching American Idol lately?  Lacey Brown is from my city, so check her out.  She had a slightly rocky song this week, but I'm still hoping to see her next week. 

Feel free to send me an email at emilytheperson@yahoo.com