Transformed

It never ceases to amaze me how a life can be changed and yet it happens! I've been working for a Christian NGO which works among the beggars and slum children in Secunderabad. Whenever I have gone to the weekly feeding programme, there are more than hundred beggars who come for it. They look seedy, slimy, smelly, and all the worst possible adjectives I can think of! Yet they come, not just for the food packet they get, but also for the hope that they receive. This programme is funded entirely by the giving of some faithful people, who have a burden for such underprivileged people.

I used to be affronted by beggars one meets at traffic light crossroads, who sometimes force you to give to them. Many times I would quickly roll up the car window if it was open, and look the other way so as not to make eye contact with the person. It seemed to me that they were pretending and acting because they looked quite hale and hearty except for the quivers and the shakes they would manifest. I would just feel upset and angry. But I would very quietly give to some beggars with twisted arms and legs or physically challenged in any way.

It was only after studying the Bible that I decided to do something about it. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament speak about giving to the poor. The verses I found were Deuteronomy 24:21, where the Lord admonishes, "When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow." The word of God is filled with the promise of blessings to those who regard the needs of the needy around them. In Psalm 41:1, the Lord promises, "Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble." In Proverbs 19:17, we are assured, "He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again." And again in Proverbs 28:27, the Lord pledges to us, "He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack:"

Turning to the New Testament in Matthew 6:2, Jesus instructs us on how to give alms in a manner that is pleasing to God, "Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." His admonition does not say "if you give alms." Rather He states, "when you give alms." Paul understood this and states in Galatians 2:10, "Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do." Again Paul states in 2 Corinthians 9:9, "....he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever."

Such verses changed my thinking and I realized that I need to give to the poor without any negative feelings inside of me. I teamed up with this NGO which gives to the poor and have been so fulfilled ever since.

This one story really made me take notice of the fact that God can change anybody's heart, however evil and wicked they may have been. Once they receive God's forgiveness, their lives are transformed. Maulana's testimony is really amazing. Maulana Saheb was a shepherd in Srikakulam and ran away and came to Secunderabad. He became a thief and lived by stealing. One day he came to the adult beggar's ministry near the Secunderabad railway station and learned that there is a better way to live. He accepted the Lord Jesus as his personal Saviour and his life was changed. He stopped stealing and instead learned to be a mason, working in construction of houses. He is a joyful man and prays everyday and gives sound advice to other beggars to stop stealing, ragpicking and living as a thief and do work honestly and God will bless them. Now he has a steady job and is working honestly. He is a changed person. Only God's transformation lasts to eternity!