Four Pieces of Toast

       I never thought about being poor when I was a child. I always had what I needed and got a lot of the things I wanted, so figured I was as well off as most other people. Life in the 40’s was always a struggle and most people were struggling just trying to make ends meet. When I went to school, I would start off the day with a cup of coffee and 4 pieces of toast.  I don’t recall eating any eggs or bacon in the morning and we didn’t have cereal in the house. That was just the way it was.   At least, we seem to always have bread and coffee. Some would say we were poor. Maybe so, but again, we had what we needed.  Dad was a good mechanic, electrician, plumber and whatever else we needed in those days.  He changed the brakes on the car, fixed the pump in the dark on a cold winter night, built a house and later a greenhouse, a garage and chicken coop and he made do with what he had.  He also never threw away anything but kept it in a coffee can somewhere.  The Psalmist has also stated that he was poor. Psalm 86:1 says, “Bow down thine ear, O Lord, hear me: for I am poor and needy.”

The meaning of the “poor” conditions that the Psalmist is talking about is perhaps a bit different than material things. When I think of being poor and needy in regard to spiritual things, I am reminded about the knowledge and wisdom that we need to live this life the way God wants us to live. We know it isn’t a bed of roses and there are some thorns now and then as we travel the road of life. The Psalmist is here asking the Lord to listen to him as he explains that he is a poor and needy individual. That pretty well sums up our condition. We are poor and needy.  The difficulty in today’s world is that we may have a lot of money in the bank but we still are poor as we don’t realize it.  Our poverty is pretty well witnessed in our spiritual lives.    The rich and famous often come down to the end and realize that there is something missing in their lives.  They have missed that which is the most important.  They miss the Bible and the lessons that it teaches.  We need the Word of God to get us through everything that the world is going to throw our way. So, we can say to God, like the Psalmist,  that we are also poor and needy. When you think about it, every man, woman, boy and girl is poor and needy. You may have diamond rings, a Lincoln, a big house and all the trimmings and can still be poor and needy. That which you lack can only be supplied by God. So, praise God that He is indeed the supplier of the needs of the poor and needy person.