From the Field Philippines: Lifting Up The Poor
Written by Isaiah Aaseby
One of the most impactful lessons we learned this week was in light of considering the poor, and the humility God needs from us to participate in the work he is involved in. Our immersion team has been working with 4 Bible Students this summer on our campus in the Philippines. These students are between the ages of 15-20, and are local Filipinos given the opportunity for an immersive experience of service, daily Bible studies & prayer, and times of reflection on their maturation in the Lord. One night this week we were given an assignment to make a meal with limited resources from local stores. We accomplished the task, but the lesson to follow stood out the most.
Our facilitator of our Immersion Trip Leafa Vagatai, a member of GOD South East Asia, taught us about the economic reality of the Philippines & the average amount Filipinos spend on food daily. It was startling, and challenging to conceptualize providing for a family with minimal resources. The average family of 4-5 spends about 150 Pesos a day on food, which is slightly lower than $3 USD. We discussed the assignment afterwards, and Leafa referenced Mary’s words from the book of Luke:
Luke 1:52-53: “He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.”
One of the inevitable immersion experiences a part of our trip is having to contend with poverty. It feels like it is everywhere, and it can feel uncomfortable to sit within. In contrast to common methods of resolving poverty, our efforts are more than throwing money at a situation as the solution. Instead, God wants to lift up the poor through education, advocacy, and empowerment. These are the 3 focuses of GOD International, centered around developing communities of people. We have had the special opportunity to witness & participate in this alternative model, through getting to work with the Bible students this summer on our campus in the Philippines. As youth coming from impoverished backgrounds, subject to difficult economic, and familial realities; they get to participate with our immersion team for different parts of our trip, such as running a Camp Skillz for Elementary kids, a program of GOD International. Despite being subject to poor & challenging conditions, God is lifting the Bible students up by empowering them to serve others in their community, and educating them with daily times of Bible study. Mary’s words are more than just one side being brought down or lifted up, but they work together. God has been humbling our immersion team, and showing us that when we take the position of a servant and lower ourselves, the poor can be lifted up.
The following morning we were led in prayer through each section of the Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:9-15. One part of the prayer that God challenged me with was praying for our daily bread:
Matthew 6:11: “Give us this day our daily bread.”
This didn’t stand out as if I began to feel insecure about what I was going to eat today, because that has never been something I’ve had to worry about. Our trip leader Leafa challenged us that if we come from a place where we have daily bread, we need to pray for those who don’t have daily bread. This moment was more than just a single prayer to God, but a call for living in such a way that it’s not my will I am living for, but for establishing God's Kingdom here on earth as in heaven (Matthew 6:10). God wants everybody to have enough food for them and their family to eat daily; but that isn’t how the world is at the moment, nor what some families experience in the Philippines. God was showing & challenging me to turn my prayers towards those people, but also in turn to live in such a way that my efforts are going towards ensuring others have their daily bread. This isn’t an instantaneous solution, but something that will require a life lived in remembrance of the poor. Part of living in remembrance of the poor is actively taking the steps to lower ourselves, in order to allow the lowly & poor to be lifted up. It’s part of our calling to be a blessing to all the families of the earth, as seen in Abraham’s calling (Genesis 12:1-3); but part of living this calling out is humbling ourselves in faith in order to lift up the poor.
It’s humbling to come in contact with the poor, and uncomfortable. The uncomfortability isn’t bad, in fact it can incite us to call on the Lord if we choose to. It’s too much to experience kids, and mothers on the street begging for food. It’s happened more times than I anticipated, nor will ever forget. This isn’t what God intended. But, Jesus is asking me and all of us to lower ourselves in order to lift up the poor. In fact, our response to those in need is correlated to how we treat Jesus:
Matthew 25:34–40: “Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’”