The Beggar

This is a photo of the very first beggar I met in India. The orange bundle in her hand is her baby. If you notice, she is in the middle of the road. A motorcycle just drove by very quickly. If she wasn't careful, she could have been hit and both her and her baby would be in very serious trouble.

He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done. ~Proverbs 19:17

If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered. ~Proverbs 21:13

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. ~1 John 3:17-18

I wish I could tell you that I gave her my life savings. Or at least 500 rupies (about $11) but I didn't. I wish I could tell you that I gave her a bible in her native language and shared the story of Jesus with. But I didn't. You see it's not that easy in India. In India there are millions of beggars. They are all over the streets. The problem is, if you give to one they all expect you to give to them. And they expect you to give to them until you no longer have anything to give and you are a beggar yourself. If you allow them to get too close to you, they will steal from you. If you have ever seen the movie, Slumdog Millionaire, you know the dangers of giving to children. Give to a poor child, and the adult that "cares" for them will hurt them. They know that the more pathetic a child looks (missing body parts, scarred skin, carrying a baby) the more money the child will receive. So for our safety we were advised that we were not allowed to give to beggars. This was one of the hardest aspects of the trip. To look a person in the eye and tell them no. We had to learn how to look them in the eye and memorize their face so that we could pray for them.
Here is the picture of the last beggar I met in India.

Whenever I look at this picture, I see all the beggars of India. I challenge you, I BEG you to say a pray for this woman and the millions she represents.