Serving Needs
There are some folks who could afford their meals, but they come to eat with those who have no money.
Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. - Isaiah 55:1-3
Today's reading from Isaiah is an invitation to feast on what is good, rich and free. It is an invitation to the poor and to those who make themselves poor by spending their money on the wrong things.
Who are we to judge, though. Right?
It is not easy to tell whether or not someone has the means to afford a meal. Those who dress well may be truly struggling, while those who look like they are struggling may just be making bad choices.
In either case, they come to the point where they need help.
I have been told that one of the guys I see every day receives a substantial sum of money from an inheritance each month. He and his brothers each get the same amount.
Both brothers have used the money to start and run successful businesses, but the oldest one chooses to spend lavishly on women and drugs.
One cannot hear that without reacting.
We might think money alone can solve the problems and circumstances we encounter in life, but there may be something with far more influence on us than money.
What this man is hungry for, we cannot provide, and I think that is Isaiah's point.
What are you thirsting for?
It is a question we all need to ask ourselves.
Why squander our resources on things that don't satisfy, when we could be feasting on what does?
Our challenge each day in the soup kitchen is to feed the hungry, but our mission is to set an example of what is good in this life, so people like this man may see a need to channel his resources in a way that serves his needs in a way that is helpful and not harmful.
Of course, once again, that is being judgmental, isn't it?
More to come...