Have you ever wondered how faith can sustain you during tough times? Once upon a time, my family and I were plunged into poverty after my parents' separation. My mother took up a job as a domestic worker, earning meager wages, and we had to rely on the welfare system. Despite these challenging circumstances, we always had enough - food, clothes, toys - a blessing I attribute to the divine guidance and provision of the Lord. Drawing from the poignant message of the 23rd Psalm, I share my personal story of survival and abundance amidst scarcity.
In our journey through life, establishing a personal relationship with God can be transformative. I invite you to consider the significance of knowing God and having a personal bond with Jesus. There's a compelling promise that when we open our hearts and ask for His forgiveness, He manifests Himself in our lives in ways we may never have imagined. Let's explore this spiritual journey together, reminding ourselves of the Shepherd's invitation to know God. Remember, no matter the hardships we face, we are never abandoned.
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness. For his name's sake, yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff. They comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over Surely. Goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading of the 23rd Psalm.
Speaker 2:
Hey friends, ms Jaza is here and welcome to Scripture. Time to Feed Your Soul. The 23rd Psalm is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It reminds me that throughout my life journey there seems to have been a divine guidance, provision, protection and deliverance through the help of someone who is known as the Good Shepherd. Just check out the book of John, chapter 10 in the Bible.
Speaker 2:
During the last episode of my story, it ended with my parents separating from each other And my mother is left on her own with two kids, no job and no place to stay. But before I continue this part of the story, let me back up to when my parents were together. So when we were a family, my father was the breadwinner or the provider or the head of household. He was the one who brought home the bacon, so to speak. Mom was a housewife. This was a very common family structure in those days. My dad had a good factory job and our standard of living was decent for a black family. In that day, and as I said earlier, after mom and dad had separated, mom was left with two children to feed, with no financial support. As a result, we plummeted into deep poverty. Thank God, a close family member took us in And of course God will provide, since he already knows that we are in need of these things, according to Matthew 6, verse 32 in the Bible. So we had a place to stay temporarily, but my mom needed a place to work.
Speaker 2:
In those days domestic work was very common and provided steady employment for black women. Typically these women were considered unskilled labor. They were single or the head of their households, with or without children. Domestic work usually involved housekeeping duties such as cleaning, cooking, laundry and childcare. The employers were generally middle to upper class white families. So mom became a domestic worker for families in suburban towns. Fyi, or for your information, there is a movie entitled The Help and parts of it depicts the duties of domestic work and domestic workers. The wages were minimum at best. There was no standard pay so the employer could pay whatever they wanted to pay.
Speaker 2:
I know that at some point in time my mom began receiving government assistance. It was back then and still is called the welfare system. Also during that time my mom was fighting for child support from my father. To qualify for welfare, the individual was usually a single parent or a female at or below the poverty level with children, and there were probably other qualifications also. So by society standards, somebody like me was considered an unfavorable statistic, poverty-stricken, hopeless and unlikely to succeed in life.
Speaker 2:
But scripture says that the righteous has never been forsaken, nor do their children beg for bread. That's found in Psalm 37, verse 25. And I can certainly attest to the truth of this verse in that I really don't feel that I bore the burden of poverty, because during that time of poverty and despair I had more than enough food to eat, more than enough clothes to wear and more than enough toys to play with. And this is something that I did not realize at the time, but I know it now. The Lord was and is my shepherd.
Speaker 2:
This concludes my story for now, but please join me next time as I continue my story in part 3. Before we go, i would like to leave you with some soul food for thought. The shepherd can protect and provide for those sheep that know him by voice, but he cannot protect and provide for those who do not know him. So if you would like to know God and have a personal relationship with Jesus, just ask him to come into your heart and forgive you of all your sins and be your shepherd. Your Lord and your Savior. Give him a chance and he will show himself to be real in your life. Peace and love to you, my friends. Talk to you soon.