Acts 9:39

...All the widows stood around [Peter], crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

God's Word commands us to care for widows and orphans.  It commands us to give to the poor. 

I often find myself dreaming of what I'd do if I won the lottery or came into a large inheritance.  "I'd be so good," I tell myself. "I'd give so much of that money away."  And then I think of all the charities I'd like to support, and how, most of all, I'd like to be a kind of benevolent Santa Claus, surprising people with anonymous help, like paying doctor bills or funding car repairs.

The fact is, I'm not rolling in dough.  We pretty much live paycheck to paycheck, the way I think most of us do.  But here's the thing - that doesn't exempt us from God's commands.  My family has enough.  Much more than enough, actually.  And so, while I may not be able to write a hefty check to my favorite charity each month, I can do something.  Maybe it's $50.  Maybe just $5.  But I can do something.  And while I may not be able to pay doctor bills for a church member who is hospitalized, I can bring meals to their family.  I can offer to watch their children while they sit in the waiting room.  I can provide rides to and from the doctor's office. 

Dorcas could make clothes for those in need.  And that's what she did.  She used her skills and resources to give to others.  She was a beautiful example of a godly woman.

Proverbs 31:19-20

In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers.  She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.

(Since a distaff isn't something I frequently use, I had to look up what it is.  Like a spindle, it's something used for spinning wool.) 

The first verse made me think of Dorcas, in Acts 9, who made clothing for the poor, and so I thought it fit well with the verse that follows it.  The Proverbs 31 woman is charitable.  She shares generously with those who are in need.  I think, though, that the choice of wording is important.  "She opens her arms" and "extends her hands".  This isn't long-distance giving, like sending a check to a far-off organization (although that is a good thing to do).  This is more personal.  She welcomes the needy.  It sounds like a face-to-face kind of thing.  She not only helps meet their physical needs, but she takes the time to get to know them.  She treats them like she would treat a friend or family member.  Maybe it's working at a soup kitchen.  Maybe it's helping the family down the street who has fallen on hard times.  But she ministers personally to their needs and in doing so, shows them the love of Christ.