Using the Power of the Gospel to Fight Hunger: Operation Blessing Manager Says We Must Rely on God's Hand in Uncertain Times

As inflation squeezes American families, hunger relief organizations supplying food banks are pointing to the power of the gospel as another tool to fight hunger.

The current Consumer Rate Index is soaring above 6% in the U.S. and some experts believe it could go even higher. The cost of almost everything is running its highest course in 30 years. 

In 2020 alone, America's poverty rate grew by three million people. The economic fallout is especially heartbreaking for those who see it worsening.

"What I've learned is a lot of people are only one paycheck away from not being able to put food on the table," said Ryan Foltz, senior program manager for hunger relief for Virginia Beach, Virginia-based Operation Blessing. 

Topping the list in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index for October: gas and energy, rising nearly 50% compared to last year. And the cost of putting food on the table is also surging past 6%. 

Many food banks report paying two to three times what they did just nine months ago. 

Households already struggling to pay for food now face an economy dealing with continuing COVID impact, supply chain issues, and labor shortages.

Workers behind the scenes helped food banks feed 60 million Americans in 2020, the highest on record. However, Foltz told CBN News there's more to this poverty equation because as the Bible says, "Man does not live by bread alone."

"More food has been thrown at poverty. More money has been thrown at poverty. Yet poverty continues to increase exponentially," Foltz explained. "Some pastors have been red-flagged from the food bank for praying and sharing the gospel. But this is why we do what we do. It's a distinct difference."

Despite our pandemic problems, relying on God's hand should be our main focus during these uncertain times, he added. 

"We use the food as a means to have a key to their heart and be able to share with them, and minister the gospel, pray with them, because that's the greater need," Foltz said.

To find out more about how you can help Operation Blessing, click here. 

Analysts warn the worst could be yet to come because a freezing winter might drive up energy prices more than predicted. 

Other concerns are price gauging at the pump and the end of pandemic relief programs. 

The White House, on the other hand, forecasts inflation will fall next year. Press Secretary Jen Psaki maintains the president's Build Back Better agenda will keep the economy from falling off a fiscal cliff. 

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