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A few years ago, I wrote aboutliving with poverty, but not in poverty. 

My struggle has not ceased.

However, I have learned a great deal about poverty in these last few years.  I’ve read somegreat bookson the subject.  I’ve learned from a few amazing, talented, passionate friends here in Tanzania who know so much about alleviating poverty through community development.  I’ve witnessed the impact of various economic systems both in Tanzanian and the U.S. 

And so I don’t feel so helpless anymore.  I still feel the urge to do more, and I pray often that God will convict me as to how He wants me to better use the resources He has given me.  I don’t have all the answers.  But I am starting to get a picture of what some of the answers might be.

And that’s what I want to share with you.  Because the things I have learned are universal; they don’t just apply to Africa. 

So here we go.

Lesson #1: 

When it comes to helping alleviate poverty, and to what God expects from me, God doesn’t want just my money.

We’ve established that I am rich.  You are rich.  We have far more money at our disposal than the vast majority of people in the world. 

But it’s not just how we use our money that God will hold us responsible for.

I am a healthy person.  And I have access to excellent health care.  Thus, I should have more energy to devote to serving others than most people in the world, who regularly, daily, struggle with health issues and have no options (not even WebMD!).

I am an educated person.  Since I have some post-college graduate training, I am one of the most educated people in the world.  How am I using my education to further God’s kingdom?  How I am wisely using the money and time that was invested in my education?  Since I know about the suffering in the world—of the unborn, of persecuted Christians, of those who are in slavery, how will I be held accountable for that knowledge?

I am a citizen of a country that allows religious freedom (most of the time!).  I am living in another country that also allows religious freedom.  Am I taking advantage of the opportunities for the gospel that gives me? 

I am rich in spiritual resources.  The number of Christian books, sermons, songs, and translations of the Bible that are available to me at the click of my finger is mind-boggling.  I have a better grasp of theology than most African pastors–not because I am more worthy or have more faith, but simply because I am American and have infinite opportunity to learn.  Yet why is my faith so much weaker than theirs?

And of course, the fact that I am a financially rich person also provides for more than just nice things.  I don’t need to labor all day to provide food for my family, so I have more time for service.  I am able to take lovely vacations, so I should be all the more useful and productive as a result. 

I am a Ten Talent Servant.  Am I using all of them?  Am I putting to use all of the abundant resources God has given me? 

We hear about those pastors in India who travel around by bicycle.  They get beaten up a lot by people who hate them.  They sleep under the stars and rely on the generosity of others in order to eat.  They have been given One Talent when it comes to resources and money and health.  They have nothing, yet they are furthering God’s kingdom in amazing ways.

So if they have One and are doing all that, and I have Ten, shouldn’t I be doing ten times as much?

Keep reading:  Part 3

I am an aristocrat.

So are you.

I am one of the richest people in the world.  And I don’t mean that figuratively.  I mean that literally.  I do not own a plane, or a boat, or even a house.  But I am one of the richest people in the world.  Filthy, stinkin’ rich. 

I want you to please clickherefor a moment.  Please.  Then go on and read what else I have to say. 

Did you do it?  Did you enter your family’s income? 

Yeah.  Sobering, isn’t it? 

Oh, I’ve heard the excuses.  “But the cost of living in the United States is so much higher than anywhere else.  We need more money just to get by.”

Oh yes.  True.  But the standard of living is also much higher. 

You are one of the richest people in the world.  I know this because you own a computer, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this.  And if you own a car and have a college education, that puts you in the top 7%.

It’s difficult to fathom this when you are surrounded by people who have as much, or more, than you do.  But that doesn’t make it any less true. 

I don’t know about you, but aristocrat doesn’t really bring to mind positive images.  Rather, I think of Marie Antoinette saying, Let them eat cake.  We think of aristocrats as the very rich who revel in their wealth and ignore the poor at their doorstep. 

Are we that far from that description?

I’ve been thinking about this in biblical terms.  Remember the parable of the talents?  Each servant was given a different amount of money, and the amount didn’t matter, just the responsibility. 

Well.  If you go back to that website and see where you fall on the Global Rich List, can you claim anything other than 10 talents?

I am a Ten Talent Servant.  So are you.  We are at the top of the heap.  We are the aristocracy of the world. 

And we will be held responsible as such. 

I have always, every day of my life, had enough to eat.  My closet has always been crammed with clothes.  My housing options have been numerous.  My educational options have been even greater.  The sky is the limit; I can practically do anything and go anywhere if I really wanted to.  I can read any book in English; any kind of information is available to me. 

I have never lived in fear of starvation.  I have never been raped by a soldier who is supposed to protect me.  I have never had to put my children to bed hungry.  I have never been faced with the decision of leaving a child behind to die of starvation alone, or to get the rest of my family to a refugee camp.  I have never lived in fear of a brutal dictator.  I have never had to worry about where or how my children will go to school.  If my children get sick, I can afford the best medical care in the country.  And if that’s not good enough, I have insurance to fly them somewhere else. 

The more I learn about the suffering in the world, the more I am amazed that I have been spared from it.  The more humbled I am.  Every difficulty in my life that I have faced is nothing, nothing, nothing compared to the suffering that billions of people in this world face every day. 

I am so rich. 

I am so cared for.

I have so much opportunity. 

I have Ten Talents. 

I am an aristocrat. 

And that changes my perspective on everything. 

To whom much has been given, much will be required. 

Keep reading:  Part 2