The Cry of the Poor
If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered.
Proverbs 21:13
Poor people have a lot to cry about. They are weakened and made vulnerable by their lack of resources on every level imaginable. Being poor affects how much food you eat and what kind of food you have access to, if any. It limits the safe areas in which you are able to afford to live. Being poor limits transportation, education, and thus, job opportunities, as well as severely restricts having access to basic life necessities such as health services, payment for your place of living if you even have one, and respect as a unique individual in the community.
God has a lot to say about poor people. At some point, I recommend going to a site like www.BibleGateway.com and typing the word "poor" into the search box. From beginning to end of the Bible, God speaks about the poor in the law books, in the Psalms, stories, parables, and in the interactions of Jesus with people. You could probably spend an entire year or a lifetime studying God's view of the poor.
Over and over, the Lord makes provision for the poor in his laws, telling his people in the Old Testament to leave edges of fields unharvested for the poor (and then wild animals) to access and to give generously to those in the community who are poor. He considers ignoring the poor so severe, that in the verse I reference above, he makes it clear that if you ignore the cries of the poor, you will not be heard when you are in distress.
Riches are a blessing from the Lord. Scripture makes it clear, especially throughout Proverbs, that if the rich (people in power) see the poor, do not oppress them, hear their cries, judge fairly, they will be blessed, if not, they are cursed and cut off.
At the same time, the Bible points out that it is not wealth or lack thereof which defines one's worth, it is character and rightness with God:
Proverbs 28:6
Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a rich man whose ways are perverse.
Proverbs 28:11
A rich man may be wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has discernment sees through him.
A person does not have to be rich in order to serve the poor in some way. In high school and college, our church youth/young adult groups took mission trips around the country to minister to poor children and homeless people. As an adult, I sponsor a child through Compassion International, work at a homeless shelter, and donate my time or items to causes that our church orchestrates. I say this, not to make myself look good, but as a poor person myself, to show that there is always someone who is poorer than you in the world and there is always something you can do to help alleviate a person's poverty.
There are elementary school age children who volunteer at the homeless shelter where I work or pool their pennies to send to organizations that rescue children from trash heap living. One couple I know who do not have their own children, took some time out of their busy holiday schedule to buy a Christmas tree for a poorer, single mother neighbor with two autistic children, and decorated their house with lights! There are people who tutor refugees in English, people who spearhead food drives, or who offer their legal or health services to the poor. My friends constantly bless my life by giving me food when they go out of town, when they drive me to the grocery store so I can go shopping without taking the bus, or when they sit down to help me search for better jobs. If your eyes and ears are open and sensitive to the cries of the poor, you will discover tangible needs right in front of you in your daily life. That, I think, is the godly way to live.
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