During the month of October our churches will be receiving our annual World Hunger Offering. I encourage all of you to participate because the needs worldwide are staggering.

Did you know that six million children under the age of five die every year as a result of hunger? If that figure hits you like it did me when I first read it, you find it to be unfathomable. We know the conditions in many places around the world are harsh, but six million children dying under the age of five is heartbreaking! In our land of plenty it is inconceivable to us that so many could die from lack of nourishment. The very idea of even one child going to bed hungry at night breaks my heart, but six million under five years of age dying of starvation? How can we tolerate such a thing in our day of technology and wealth?

My wife and I went out to eat this evening and returned home well fed. This is not an unusual occurrence for most people who will be reading this column, but do we ever stop to think about the fact that in our world today there are more than 840 million people who are malnourished? More than 153 million of these people are under the age of five.

Perhaps you are responding, “Yes, but we live in America.” How thankful we are that this is not a problem in our country. Maybe you are not aware that approximately four million children under twelve years of age go hungry every day in the United States. An additional 9.6 million children are at risk of being hungry. Fifteen million children live at or below the poverty level. Right here in Georgia, in 2003, Georgia Baptist hunger ministries fed 324,276 meals to hungry people in our own state. You will be pleased to know that through these ministries, 278 professions of faith in Christ were reported. In North America, in 2003, 24,000 professions of faith were reported as a result of hunger ministries. In this work, Southern Baptists are following the method of Christ who ministered both to the body and to the soul.

The Bible is plainly spoken on the matter of caring for the hungry. Deuteronomy 24:19-21 reads: “When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow” (NIV).

In Deuteronomy 15:11, God said, “For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land” (KJV).

Proverbs 14:21b says, “He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he” (KJV).

Proverbs 21:13 declares, “Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard” (KJV).

1 John 3:17-18 convicts us with these words: “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth” (NIV).

James 2:15-17 reads, “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (NIV).

The Bible is abundantly clear on the subject of God’s people taking care of the poor. If we fail in this we are without excuse before our Lord.

The World Hunger Offering is received in October every year. The receipts are sent to my office for distribution according to the following formula:

Ten percent remains in Georgia to feed the hungry in our own state.

Ninety percent is sent on to the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention for distribution to Southern Baptist ministries. Of the 90% sent to the SBC, 80% goes to the International Mission Board and 20% goes to the North American Mission Board. This has proven to be an efficient distribution through Georgia and Southern Baptists to meet the hunger needs all across the world.

I am grateful for Ricky Thrasher on our Georgia Baptist Convention staff, whose responsibility it is to oversee this ministry among the needy in Georgia. He works closely with our associations all across the state in this ministry. I know Ricky would appreciate your prayers for him as he works daily in obedience to God’s Word, which calls us to care for the poor.

The needs have never been greater in the world than they are right now. I am praying that Georgia Baptists will receive the largest World Hunger Offering in our history. Remembering the great need and the command of the Lord, will you do your part?