Learning from the Poor by Gill Newham Missionary to Mongolia
Children in torn clothes with dirty faces beg for a few turgriks on the streets of Ulaanbaatar. The maimed and the beaten sell cigarettes or polish shoes. Many live cheek by jowl in shanty districts around the city. Without running water and no proper sanitation they know they are the poor.
It is sad to see and it’s also sad to realise that poverty may never be eliminated from the world. As Jesus so rightly said, “The poor will always be with you.” Yet I wonder whether there are things to be learned from the poor.
Certainly poverty in Mongolia is first and foremost an economic condition but it is also more than that. It is living in the world without the things the world values, whether that’s education, life skills, possessions or money.
Largely discarded, the poor aren’t always able to climb out of their poverty. Frequently, they are marginalised and alone, pushed away and kept at bay. Vulnerable and unprotected what they have can easily be taken from them with nothing given back.
We’ve seen irresponsible behaviour turn successful professionals into beggars and Mongolian friends, struck by bankruptcy, abandoned by spouses and families.
It is pitiable, and I understand why people don’t want to be around the poor; their poverty rankles at my conscience. How should I respond to the brokenness of the human race? The Bible says with mercy and justice.
The Bible calls us to preach the good news to the poor. Reading more carefully I get the distinct impression that God sees the poverty of my heart and soul and that He requires that I recognise and acknowledge it too.
When I first became a Christian I saw it easily. My sin was before me and my absolute need for a saviour obvious.
But today sadly I can be blinded. In ministry I can feel capable and comfortable. I work hard and seek to live nobly — I’m becoming a religious person.
Pride blinds me; that is, until I fall again and realise that the on-going saving power of the gospel only comes to me as I willingly acknowledge my poverty. I am utterly lost and, in my own strength, can do nothing that will be of eternal value. I am totally dependent on God.
I am poor in spirit – although, I think I’m in good company. Jesus became poor. He left His throne above and came to earth. He was beaten and marginalised, rejected and died naked. But His actions and resurrection birthed a hope in our lives that sends us empty-handed to God begging for mercy.We have nothing of value and we owe Him everything.
Many of the poor in Ulaanbaatar love the gospel. They want something that will radically change their lives and lift them out of poverty. God comes and gives them hope.
We are the poor, and never graduate from poverty to riches. With our eyes opened we see our life’s story mirrored in the beggars and the marginalised and that recognition changes my attitude. I’m growing in my love for the discarded and seeking to be content with what I have as I ask God to teach me how to give with open hands.