And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them. (Moses 7:18)
In our society it is difficult to walk downtown and not see the homeless in their make-shift shelters. In our day, with the numerous social programs, it’s easy to blame the poor for their condition.
This type of thinking is common, but it’s also dangerous. “Are we not all beggars?” King Benjamin asks in the Book of Mormon. We all have brought upon ourselves condemnation. We are only made free through the mercy and love of our Savior. He condescended to help us. As followers of Christ, we covenant to help others.
In a recent talk by Jeffery R Holland, he taught the Lord’s way of giving to the poor is through the law of the fast. Participants abstain from food for two meals and then give an offering equivalent to the price of two meals. He noted that millions of people have been helped through the Lord’s law of the fast.
Elder Holland stated: I don’t know exactly how each of you should fulfill your obligation to those who do not or cannot always help themselves. But I know that God knows, and He will help you and guide you in compassionate acts of discipleship if you are conscientiously wanting and praying and looking for ways to keep a commandment He has given us again and again. (Jeffery R Holland https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2014/10/are-we-not-all-beggars?lang=eng)
krhofhiens.com 
Kim, I appreciated these remarks. Last week I listened to Come Follow Up, I believe. A discussion of Come Follow Me. They made the point that the church is like our body. If a part of our body is sick or hurting we do what we can to alleviate the pain. In the same way, in the world, when someone feels pain or suffers we need to look for ways to help. I agree that the Lord will bless us to know what we should do. We need to Hear Him.
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It is so true! It’s amazing how often we are instructed to listen to that still small voice. The prophet is really encouraging us to seek revelation and act on it.
Thanks for your comments, Cheryl. 🙂
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