Poor People

Dear Victorious,

Why does God allow poverty? Isn't He supposed to love everyone equally?

T. J. - London, U.K.

Dear T.J.,

No, God isn't supposed to love everyone equally ... if you define love by how someone blesses someone else. God never promised that His blessings on us would be equal, or even fair. He has always said they would be just.

In both the Old and New Testament, the Bible tells us that there will always be the poor among us. Why? Because there will always be the selfish, the greedy, the thoughtless and the uncaring among us.

God has a plan for the poor people. The rest of us are supposed to take care of them. That we don't is why they remain trapped in desperate circumstances. It is also why we have come to view poverty as a terrible lot in life. Consider if the rest of us would actually take care of the poor - their plight wouldn't be desperate.