God intended that humans would be the custodians of everything, including the wealth he entrusted them. Being a good steward denotes that a person should strive to multiply what they have for the benefit of the human race. Sometimes believers fail to understand what to do when interacting with those in poverty. There are many organizations and volunteers that have already tried to give donations and help those in poverty, but their efforts have failed to produce the desired outcomes. Such charitable work sometimes causes more harm to the people and fails to resolve the issue. Herman Chinery rightly states that he has never known a country that developed on aid; all the First-World nations become great from trade (Scionka, 2012). His analysis indicates that aid is the wrong track for saving Africans. Although the bible encourages giving to the poor, such strategy should only be used as crisis management, after which they should be encouraged to use their talents and trade for prosperity.
Christians should seek to transform the lives of people, not just help them and leave while they are in their dilapidating state. Anielka Munkel states that Christians are called to reflect the character of Jesus Christ by not neglecting the plight of the poor (Scionka, 2012). One way of doing so is initiating entrepreneurship like the rich man who called ten of his servants and asked them to engage in business until he returns (Holy Bible, 2004, Luke 19:13). Entrepreneurship breeds prosperity, unlike donors who are not necessarily interested in seeing the growth of local business.
Conclusively, understanding the nature and destiny of people is the foundation of the Christian response to poverty. Therefore, believers must solve the puzzle of expressing their desire to work with what will ultimately have an enduring positive impact. They should seek to establish business ties with the poor by buying from them to encourage hard work and multiplication. God intended for the multiplication of wealth through work and investment, not donations. Therefore, it is essential that as the rich try to help, they align with God’s word.
References
Holy Bible: New living translation. (2004). Tyndale House Publishers.
Scionka, S. (Director). (2012). Poverty Cure: Episode 1 [Online DVD]. Web.