09 February, 2016

Glean Living - By Arnold Machel, CFP®

"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 23:22

What application does this verse have to do with us in today’s world?

The concept, known as “gleaning” is mentioned earlier on in Leviticus and again at the end of Deuteronomy 24. Its application is very well illustrated in Ruth 2 where Boaz is provided as an example for us to follow. Not only does he allow Ruth to glean, but he also commends her for her faithfulness to Naomi, offers her protection and food and drink as she gleans.

The Fraser Valley Gleaners Society has sure taken it to heart and made a ministry out of it. Check them out and head up to Abbotsford sometime to help them slice, dice, mix and dry; all in an effort to make dried soup mix and other items for the needy. They have partnered with growers and volunteers to create an awesome ministry that provides needed nourishment in undeveloped nations.

But I believe that the application of this verse is much broader than just for farmers. While the command was indeed directed to the farmers of the day, I believe that it is for us all, and with a special emphasis for business owners.

Quite frankly for a farmer or business owner it’s probably harder to think biblically in this regard than it might be for others. After all, business is about profit. The idea of intentionally building in inefficiencies just feels wrong. We are taught, trained and molded to squeeze every last penny of profit out of our business, by keeping costs down; the very opposite of allowing inefficiencies. Similarly, those of us not in the business world who have lived on very little at times, bristle at the very thought of waste. I’ve noticed this to be particularly evident in the elderly who went through the Great Depression.

Doesn’t the Bible say “Waste not; want not”? Well… actually it doesn’t. That’s just an expression that we’ve all grown up hearing. And while there is some value in that concept too - don’t believe that God wants us to waste for the sake of wasting - He wants us to be not so tight-fisted that we miss out on opportunities to allow people to help themselves. Even if it means some goes to waste. And for the business owners reading this, I believe that Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 24 provide ideal examples of how we might help the less fortunate among us.

I guess I love these verses for a couple of reasons. Generally speaking I think it’s healthier to allow someone to at least have a hand in earning their keep, even if it’s part charity. I remember reading a Macleans article many years back about a reporter who spent some time living on the streets or in shelters and relying on charity for his food. He noted that after a time, he felt worthless. Shocking actually, when you consider he was a reporter and knew he had a home to go back to when his assignment had finished. Nonetheless, his lack of utility, even for a short time, caused this feeling of worthlessness. I’m paraphrasing, but he said something like, “Why don’t they at least give me a broom to sweep the floor with, so that I can feel that even in a small way, I am earning my meal?”

By not fully harvesting their fields, the Israelites simply provided the opportunity for the poor and the foreigner to eat. The gleaner still had to do the work of picking the grapes or the wheat or whatever crop was there.

I’ve personally been struggling with how to systemically orchestrate something like this in my own practice, but here is my challenge to you: if you are an executive with the power, or a small business owner yourself, I challenge you to earnestly seek ways to use your business to help the poor help themselves. It may be adopting a policy of hiring persons with disabilities where possible or maybe purposefully hiring marginalized individuals who just need training to become productive in society.

I can think of two examples of enterprises that do a fantastic job in this regard. Price Pro in Surrey hires workers who they believe they can help get out of destructive lifestyles. Café Momentum, a restaurant in Dallas has the tag line: “Eat. Drink. Change Lives.” We just happened upon this place on a recent trip there and were blessed immensely by what could only be called a ministry even though I don’t believe it has a religious affiliation. Café Momentum hires under-privileged and disadvantaged youth and trains them, so that they can move on to careers in the food service industry.

These are examples of businesses that purposefully operate inefficiently in order to help the disadvantaged, but I don’t think it’s only up to business owners and executives to think this way. As individuals there may be things that we can do as well.

For example, a friend of mine recently told me he has developed a personal relationship with the elderly lady who had started digging through his recycling bin to collect bottles. His family now aggregates any recycling with value and leaves them in a special place that only their new-found friend knows about, making the collection a bit easier for her and ensuring that she is the sole recipient. This is one of the best parallels of this particular scripture verse that I know of. In a sense my friend is providing charity, but more importantly he’s doing it in such a way that he is providing the opportunity for her to be productive.

My challenge to you non-business owners out there is to find similar opportunities to allow the under-privileged and disadvantaged to glean.

Business owner or not, I’d love to hear what you are doing in this area or what ideas you can come up with to assist the poor to glean for themselves. Please feel free to email me directly at the address below to share your ideas with me.

Arnold Machel, CFP® lives, works and worships in the White Rock/South Surrey area. He attends Gracepoint Community Church where he serves on the Leadership Team. He is a Certified Financial Planner with IPC Investment Corporation and Visionvest Financial Planning & Services. Questions and comments can be directed to him at dr.rrsp@visionvest.ca or through his website at www.visionvest.ca. Please note that all comments are of a general nature and should not be relied upon as individual advice. While every attempt is made to ensure accuracy, facts and figures are not guaranteed.