Friends,
Our God calls us to love Him all the days of our lives—with all our heart, soul, and mind. He asks for our loyalty and fidelity, for a faith that shapes our choices, our relationships, and the way we live each day.
In the Book of Exodus, God makes it clear to the descendants of Abraham that fidelity to Him also means caring for their neighbors, especially widows, orphans, the poor, and foreigners. He tells them:
“You shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt. You shall not wrong any widow or orphan. If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry.”
God asks His people to remember their own suffering. They knew what it meant to be strangers in a foreign land, to be oppressed, and to cry out for help. Their experience should open their hearts to the suffering of others. Having received God’s mercy, they must now show mercy themselves.
God continues:
“If you lend money to one of your poor neighbors among my people, you shall not act like an extortioner toward him by demanding interest from him. If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, you shall return it to him before sunset; for this cloak of his is the only covering he has for his body. What else has he to sleep in?”
That last question touches my heart: “What else has he to sleep in?” God is concerned about a poor person shivering through the night. He sees the needs that others might overlook. He hears the cries that others might ignore.
These words reveal the compassionate heart of God—the same heart He wants us to have. He deplores injustice, indifference, and dishonesty. He calls us to recognize every person as a fellow child of God, deserving of dignity, compassion, and care.
How fitting it is to reflect on these commandments as we continue celebrating October as a month of stewardship. Stewardship includes caring for the material and spiritual needs of our fellow human beings. The blessings entrusted to us carry a responsibility: to share them, especially with those who struggle to meet their basic needs.
That is why we are participating in the CROP Hunger Walk this Sunday: to stand in solidarity with other churches and congregations in the work of ending hunger. As we walk the streets of Glendale, we proclaim that no one should have to go without food, clean water, and the necessities of life. We cannot remain indifferent to poverty and hunger. Our faith calls us to respond with generosity and human kindness.
We walk because we believe in a God who hears the cry of the poor. We walk in gratitude for the blessings we have received. And we walk to express our love for God through our care for His people.
May each step remind us that our stewardship continues long after the walk is over—in the food we share, the help we offer, and the dignity we uphold.
Friends, let us not simply talk about our faith. Let us walk the talk, living it authentically and leading others by our good deeds. May those who encounter us experience something of the compassionate heart of God.
Amen!
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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.
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Fr. Rodel “Odey” Balagtas is the pastor of Incarnation Church in Glendale, California
