My birthday is coming up on November 6, and this year I would love to celebrate in a meaningful way. I invite you to bring canned fruit for the United Ministries food pantry! FBG collects canned fruit year-round, but the need is about to grow dramatically. As you may have heard, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced that no Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will be distributed in November. I am deeply concerned that the real-world consequences could be devastating. If you are not familiar with SNAP, it serves about 42 million low-income Americans, including 46,000 households here in Greenville. This program helps families stretch their grocery budgets each month.
Four out of five SNAP households include either a child, an elderly adult or a person with a disability. About one-third of these families rely on Social Security income, averaging only $1,096 a month. Another 28% earn income from work, averaging $1,548 a month. The average benefit is only $332 per month. In other words, these are very low-income families already struggling to afford basic necessities, and we all know how much grocery prices have risen in recent years. Imagine a grandmother on a fixed income, trying to stretch $1,096 a month to cover rent, medicine and food. SNAP benefits keep her pantry from being bare.
The biblical witness is clear that caring for people who are hungry or living in poverty is an essential part of discipleship. Around 400 verses address caring for those in need. Jesus often spoke about those suffering from hunger or poverty. In Matthew 25 he teaches that how we treat those in need has eternal significance! This clear biblical witness has sometimes led Christians to argue that “The government shouldn’t help people with food or health care, etc.; that’s the role of the church.” As Christians, we are absolutely called to help, and I am asking you to do that now. First Baptist gives year-round through United Ministries, Mission Backpack, local relief, and other monthly collections. Yet the magnitude of the need is far greater than what churches and nonprofits can meet.
Hunger and poverty require a coordinated, large-scale response; the federal government has the capacity to provide help on a scale that local organizations simply cannot. Effective care for the vulnerable is complex. It requires both the compassion of local communities and the resources of the state. Our role is not only to give, but also to advocate. Christians should bring our moral convictions into public life to serve and uplift the good of all our neighbors, reminding our leaders that caring for the hungry and vulnerable is a shared responsibility. It takes all of us, churches, nonprofits, government agencies, and businesses, working together to meet these needs. My prayer is that this is a temporary pause in SNAP benefits. In the meantime, First Baptist will do what we can. I invite you to pray, give, advocate, and stay tuned for more opportunities from the missions committee to help our neighbors in need. And remember to celebrate my birthday by bringing some canned fruit for United Ministries!
—Carol