Global Hunger Relief

At Petersburg First Baptist Church, we have been promoting an offering for Global Hunger Relief, a ministry of the Southern Baptist Convention through which the love of God is shared in word and action. The projects enabled through these funds are designed with an intentional spiritual strategy working through our missionaries already on the field and in cooperation the expertise of local leaders.

In addition to meeting crisis hunger needs during famine and natural disasters, GHR-funded projects focus on long-term, sustainable solutions to end chronic hunger through job skills training, livestock and seed distribution, clean water, home reconstruction, medical care and more.

On a mission trip to Rio de Janeiro this past summer, I had the opportunity to see how this offering is being used. Our contact missionaries in Rio have built relationships with many local churches, and the pastors of about 20 of these churches were invited to partner together to help provide food to needy families. The GHR funds were used to purchase necessary ingredients to make multiple meals, and each church is then held accountable for not only delivering the supplies to the homes, but also sharing about the love of Jesus with the visit.

The pastors continue working in relationship with the families to help them not only receive food on the table, but to receive the spiritual Bread of Life who can satisfy their greater spiritual hunger. Our team witnessed the joy of these pastors being able to meet such needs among their people.

In Nigeria, one missionary shared with us how this hunger relief project is helping 408 widows and over 1,200 children. Along with a month’s supply of food, each widow joins a co-op of 3-4 other widows to learn a trade such as sewing, knitting, cooking, raising livestock, selling firewood, etc., spending a year together to learn and make enough profit to become self-sustaining and reach out to other widows around them, as well.

Truly one of the blessings of serving the Lord in partnership like this is the ability to reach out to people in places most of us will never go. It’s humbling and joyous to see God multiply what we give and use it to display His love to meet real needs, whether near or far.

In His earthly ministry, Jesus compassionately met real needs of hurting people. He miraculously opened the eyes of the blind, made the lame to walk, healed the sick of various diseases and pains, cleansed the lepers, drove out demons, and even raised the dead to life.

But even greater than this, Jesus came to preach the good news of the Kingdom of heaven. He came with the authority to forgive sin, to reconcile sinful humanity to God, and to give eternal life to all who believe in Him.

Maybe you need a spiritual miracle today. Perhaps your soul is hungry for truth and righteousness, for forgiveness and mercy. Friend, you can come to Jesus right now and find that He is the Bread of Life who came down from heaven to satisfy your deepest hunger.