The poor and sick
Whoever mistreats the poor insults their Maker. ~ Proverbs 14:31 (NLT)
Though my poor health burdened you, you didn’t look down on me or reject me, but you welcomed me as if I were an angel from God, or as if I were Christ Jesus! ~ Galatians 4:14 (CEB)
Compassionate God, you give special consideration to the sick and poor -- the vulnerable. For it is through them that we have fellowship with you. I confess that I prefer to be around healthy and stable people. I can relax more with them. But could it be that your concerns are greater than my comfort? Could it be that you are building your kingdom from those living on the margins? I know that sounds crazy, but Jesus did say that the doctor attends to the sick -- not the healthy. Welcome Jesus -- I've got room in my life for you and your poor sickly friends. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
