Outreach-Manna from Heaven

Luke 11:5-13:

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’  And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’  I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?  Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?  If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

The word of the Lord says “I will supply all of your needs according to my riches and glory”. I would like to believe that I am right when I say that it was GOD himself that started the first community outreach program, when he provided Manna from Heaven for the children of Israel, when they were wandering through the desert tired and hungry after they left Egypt. This was then continued by our  lord Jesus Christ when he fed the 4000 and 5000 people who were following him while he was teaching, with just a couple of loaves and fishes.

GOD has always told us to love our neighbors and our lord always included that in his teachings as the above scripture noted. GOD certainly provided for my daughter and me when we were in dire need. There is too much unnecessary hunger and need in the world today, and by this I am talking also about Europe, America and the western world, and not only Africa and the sub-Saharan regions. Last September, the CEO of Panera bread in the United States, lived for a week on $35.00, which is the average one is expected to live on. He and a group of other top personnel were trying to find out if it was possible and what it feels like, as they apparently wanted to highlight hunger issues of people on welfare and related programs, and people on low incomes. It is estimated that 49 million Americans live on food stamps and 2.52 million people in the United Kingdom are unemployed with only 1.52 million claiming welfare, due to the stigma attached to it

For a lot of people, it is very embarrassing to be on welfare, and even when you are, what is given is barely enough to cover basic necessities, much more get food. Not everyone on welfare is lazy or a scrounger, and I am thankful that the service is in place for people who are in genuine need. A lot of people lost their jobs due to downsizing because of the slump in economy, migration and a host of other reasons, and were left with no choice but to look for help. Even people who are on minimum wage are struggling.

For years we survived on a one income minimum wage and after rent, utilities and transportation cost, there was hardly anything left for food. During this time, GOD allowed specific people to Bless us with food, he also directed us to other available resources such as local charities, food banks, church and other religious organization charities. We also utilize local farmers markets as we were able to get fresh food, vegetables, eggs and bread at very reasonable prices.

On our return to London, we have very limited funds and we are active jobseekers and I have been able to put in place the lessons GOD taught us while we lived in the United States. I am very creative with ideas to provide healthy, very tasty and nutritious meals. Even when we shop in big name stores, we buy store brands which are usually more than 50% cheaper and our meat of choice is chicken and at times our faithful GOD provides extras for us to even get ground beef.

It is really important to reach out to others regardless of your own personal circumstances, especially when we know they are in need, and not wait for them to ask us before we do something, as it can be a very embarrassing experience! I know, I have been there!. I recently read a post from a young lady on Facebook and it really touched a nerve! It reads “charity begins at home. We cant help anyone else if we cant even see and recognize the people that are hurting right in our own family, especially if they are hurting as a result of our actions or lack of support” well said! We might not have the financial means to help, but showing and educating them about available resources can be a great help. Even a smile and a hug can work miracles!

I will also be posting recipes from meals that I prepare and almost every ingredient can be got from a basic stocked larder.

Instead of asking all the why’s of people’s circumstances, let us do something, because GOD made us to be a Blessing for the Kingdom!!!