"And you shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry; and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless. If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him; you shall not charge him interest. If you ever take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, you are to return it to him before the sun sets, for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for I am gracious." (Exo 22:21-27)

When i was around 7 years old, i remember we lived in poor area of Buenos Aires just my mother, my younger brother, and i. We had emigrated to Argentina evading the war in Iran. And one day my mother must have had some kind of dispute with our appartment's landlord, which had left her distressed and very upset. It seemed to me then how unjust the whole situation was that a landlord should oppress my mother in this way. And at that young age and to my amazement now, God granted me the grace and wisdom that i should pray to Him about it. I simply remember letting Him know how unjust the whole situation was, and that He should do something about it.

The next thing i remember was seeing my mother relieved of the distress and happy once more. The problem had been resolved somehow.

I never forgot this little incident .... And many, many years latter, as an adult, i realized (through scriptures) why God had answered my little prayer then. He had heard because He is merciful and a God of justice.

If you find yourself in such a situation now, poor and afflicted and unjustly oppressed, you can be sure to make petitions to God and know for certain that He will hear you and bring justice on your behalf. But you must ask of Him.

And for the rest of us, it is also a reminder that we should be careful not to inadvertently oppress our neighbors who are poor, helpless, and distressed.

__________________

[QUOTE=Land-Of-Fire;1757]"And you shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry; and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless. If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him; you shall not charge him interest. If you ever take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, you are to return it to him before the sun sets, for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for I am gracious." (Exo 22:21-27)

When i was around 7 years old, i remember we lived in poor area of Buenos Aires just my mother, my younger brother, and i. We had emigrated to Argentina evading the war in Iran. And one day my mother must have had some kind of dispute with our appartment's landlord, which had left her distressed and very upset. It seemed to me then how unjust the whole situation was that a landlord should oppress my mother in this way. And at that young age and to my amazement now, God granted me the grace and wisdom that i should pray to Him about it. I simply remember letting Him know how unjust the whole situation was, and that He should do something about it.

The next thing i remember was seeing my mother relieved of the distress and happy once more. The problem had been resolved somehow.

I never forgot this little incident .... And many, many years latter, as an adult, i realized (through scriptures) why God had answered my little prayer then. He had heard because He is merciful and a God of justice.

If you find yourself in such a situation now, poor and afflicted and unjustly oppressed, you can be sure to make petitions to God and know for certain that He will hear you and bring justice on your behalf. But you must ask of Him.

And for the rest of us, it is also a reminder that we should be careful not to inadvertently oppress our neighbors who are poor, helpless, and distressed.[/QUOTE]

God Bless you for that testimony! ODIE

Dear Land-of-Fire:

That was beautiful testimony! It is my hope and prayer that many others will share their testimony on how G-d has touched, guided, and influenced their lives so that newcomers and new believers can gain hope and strength from them.