Poverty In My Life

I'm doing a personal study on poverty.


I just got a book called Make Poverty Personal: Taking Poverty as Seriously as the Bible the author identifies poverty as not having the means to live as God intends; when one is unable to live in 'shalom" and cannot without outside help.


As I have been reading this book I have also been praying for an experience with poverty, that I would personally experience it in my life. It's kind of like praying for patience as soon as the Lord begins to answer the prayer you beg for it to end:)


I had been planning a trip home to Georgia for my youngest sister's graduation. My boyfriend and I worked out our route and made plans to stop in North Carolina to see friends for a day. We packed my car and hit the road. Thirty minutes into our trip my car loses power. We were already two hours late leaving I hadn't planned on any delays. After thirty minutes of debate we turned the car around and headed to the auto shop. Two hours later we were given the diagnosis, it needed a new piece and a new timing belt. We were encouraged not to drive to Georgia. Sad day:(

So we packed all our stuff into Brian's car before dropping my car off back to the autoshop. The bad news was, Brian still needed an oil change. Our tab was getting bigger by the minute. We got to Jiffy Lube where we added some more time to our ever lengthening road trip. I cried out some woes to Brian about how I just wanted to be in Georgia and I just didn't know how I was going to afford more work on my car and a trip to Georgia! He responded, "Estie is there anything you have been praying about lately that might have something to do with our situation now?" He had to ask. "YES!" I exclaimed, "I've been praying that I'd experience poverty." Brian said he thought we should pray so there in Jiffy Lube we did. I prayed that God would meet all my financial needs and that if he wanted he could stop making me experience poverty. While my brilliant boyfriend began praying passionately that the Lord would make him experience poverty too! I slapped him in the arm, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" We can't afford to experience anymore, we get the point. 'Lord, he takes that back!'"

We laughed and embraced and decided to find joy in our taste of poverty.

I am discovering that poverty does not only affect you financially, but you can be impoverished in your spirit. Though it may sound strong, but I have used it multiple times to describe my heart to the Lord. I cry out to him, "Lord my heart is impoverished without you! I am stuck here if you don't move in my life." If I didn't have Jesus I would not be living even close to the shalom that I am in now.