Prayers for the hungry

[minutz3]

Since writing with SpoonyBard about a matter I've been thinking of, that is, too eat more than you actually need to survive or so, I thought that I'd set up this prayer request for all people who are starving around the world today.

I would be very happy if we all could try to pray a little and think about our brothers and sisters all over the world that don't have enough to eat or drink.

Please pray that we all will try not to eat more than we actually need.

I would also be happy if you also prayed for all missionaries and other people working in countries such as Africa for better conditions for these people, and that the people of these countries will be shown the way to The Lord, The Truth and our Saviour and Lord, Jesus Christ.

[Danderson]

I'll be praying.....It's sad but sometimes easy to forget about others who are out around the world sharing the Word and His light with those that don't have it, as well as those who are looking for the light...

Also, I was wondering when you said......

Please pray that we all will try not to eat more than we actually need.

...Did you mean, "pray that we would be thankful for what has been given to us and not take it for granted"...?

[minutz3]

I'll be praying.....It's sad but sometimes easy to forget about others who are out around the world sharing the Word and His light with those that don't have it, as well as those who are looking for the light...

Also, I was wondering when you said......



...Did you mean, "pray that we would be thankful for what has been given to us and not take it for granted"...?

No, I meant what I wrote.
That we shouldn't eat more than required, since people around the world don't have enough food to even let them be alive.
As long as people are starving, we shouldn't eat more than necessary.

[Denimcat]

Interesting this came up - my church is getting a group of people (including me) together to make and serve food at a homeless shelter this saturday, so it's already on my mind.

However, if I did eat only as much as I needed and never anything more, it would not be as though I could give the remainder to someone who needed it more than I did. There isn't an actual shortage of food - pigging out doesn't prevent someone else from getting a meal, so I don't see that as an issue.

[Nate]

I agree with what Carrie and Danderson posted. If I order only one burger at Burger King instead of two, that one burger I didn't order isn't going to magically get transported to a hungry person, so I feel no guilt in ordering lots of food. However, I do often times feel that I take the ability to walk to a fast food place and order a burger for granted, when there are folks who don't have that luxury.

[minutz3]

Well, you still use that money for an unneccessary cost.
Instead, one could give the money spent on an extra burger or whatever it is, to a charity organisation or so. Even if you don't send that "saved" money to some charity organisation, it still is good for the planet that we try not to overproduce, since it might be bad for forthcoming generations, since they might not be able, due to toxic levels of chemicals and so forth used in producing our food, to have enough food to eat or so.

[Nate]

Ah ha, but the meat and bread and veggies used in the burger is the same whether I order the second burger or not. They don't reach into an extradimensional pocket every time they need ingredients, they order a set amount each week or month. Any food that they do not use from people ordering, goes to waste.

So actually it wastes MORE food for me to order only one burger instead of two, because of how the supply system for the restaurant works.

Also, humans have been growing crops and raising cattle for food for thousands of years before we came along. I don't buy this "toxic chemicals" thing. And even if it was true, so what? We still have to eat, and by the logic of the "toxic chemicals" thing we should let starving people die, because if they did we'd have less food production and therefore less toxic chemicals.

Sorry, your logic doesn't hold up under fire. Again, I'm not saying it's bad to donate to charities, or to think about those less fortunate than we do, but guilt tripping someone into not supersizing those fries is ridiculous.

[Blitzkrieg1701]

Lest this post get any closer to an argument that it already is in danger of becoming, can I say something?

Honestly, I agree with Nate and company about the whole buying less thing. I don't believe that simply eating less ourselves is going cause more food to appear on the tables of those who have none and so on and so forth. The problems in the world that leave so many hungry run FAR deeper than a simple case of a few rich societies hogging most of the stuff.

That said, I'm not going to criticize you over suggesting such things. God has clearly placed a burden on your heart for those He loves and cares for, and if buying less for yourself keeps that drive strong and frees you up to follow it, then don't you dare stop! I'll confess, this is the sort of thing that I turn a blind eye too far too often, mostly because I'm cynical enough to say "Man, nothing I do is gonna help a problem this big, it's impossible." Well, God has a habit doing "impossible" things whenever it suits Him, and it's dangerous to allow our hearts to be hardened by the way we understand things to work.

I dunno, at the very least, I'd hate to see a well-meaning prayer thread derailed by bickering. Speaking of which, I'll be keeping this issue in my prayers

[Sheenar]

Our church has a Bridge ministry. We go down to Houston each month to give food and clothing to the homeless. We also do a lot of listening...

Our college minister encouraged us to sacrifice---Starbucks, eating out, etc. --and give the money we would have spent to buy the food and toiletries for these people...

Same goes for missions. Our BSM director encourages us to sacrifice as well and give to missions so people can be sent out.

A relationship with Christ requires sacrifice in some shape or form...

[minutz3]

That's the spirit Sheenar!

Well, Nate, I've been studying supply chains and so forth now, and companies DO actually order less if people order less in the restauraunt (spelling?) or whatever you might visit if you order less, simply because they would lose more money by keeping this things in their stock and so forth.

That's also one thing to consider, if we try to consume less, whatever it might be, we can make the corporations produce less goods and that means fewer warehouses, and fewer warehouse means less energy consumed, etc.

I'm not trying to use any " you are guilty"-argument here, just trying to suggest how to make the world a better place to live.