An Encounter with a Begging Woman that Reflected My Own Poverty

I came out of daily Mass one day and got in my car. A begging woman who looked physically frail came up to my car window. I rolled it down and she began begging for money. I had no cash on me and felt terrible that I couldn't offer her anything. She persisted and her begging became desperate, upset and angry. The depth of her physical need became apparent. 

The situation startled me. I had never seen a begging person become upset and angry before. Usually, they understand and leave you in peace. 

But there was desperation in her face. She was in need.

This woman has been on my thoughts a lot. As I think about my encounter with her, it resembles my own begging of the Lord to fulfill my emotional needs. I am no different than this woman -- I just have a different need and poverty: poverty of spirit.

Sometimes my own begging of God becomes ugly, desperate, upset and angry when I feel like He isn't providing. I'm not physically frail, but I'm emotionally and spiritually frail.

I depend on God for all of my emotional and spiritual needs to be fed every day. Sometimes that provision is abundant and other times it is not.

I'm no different than this begging woman. Life has taken a toll on each of us in different ways. We both have needs. The difference is who I beg to and why I beg.

May we all see something of ourselves in the begging person at our door -- whether they are begging verbally or silently, whether they are poor in material goods or poor in spirit, and whether they need food, healing or love.