Question for Theists: The Proble with Thanking God

[Rhondazvous]

Oh, exactly, Rhonda!!

For centuries, it has even seemed that Christians believed that god "took care of them" BECAUSE they believed and prayed and worshiped properly.   It was only proper to thank god for food and shelter and whatever else at every meal - you had to show your gratitude, you know, just in case the big guy in the sky would start feeling unappreciated.  And the "clean your plate and be grateful for it, because there are starving kids in Africa" line was almost a joke.

Well, what ABOUT the starving kids in Africa?  And many of them are believers too (thanks to many thousands of sleazy missionaries.  They pray.  Why are they starving?  Why does god give US food and not them?  And maybe the more important question is, why will millions of Xtians thank god for what they have on Thanksgiving, but never even consider searching out the people in need who live only a few blocks away?  (And don't give me the old line about tithing.  Putting money in the church basket is easy, and it's like paying money to go to a movie each week.)  Why would someone who claims to follow the teachings of Jesus not be driven to help the less fortunate? 

There is SO much of Xtianity that strikes me as egotistical.  "I have this powerful deity who is my own special friend and takes care of me - thank you God!!!"  but then "oh, don't give money to that beggar, he'll just spend it on booze", or "don't think about those kids over there who won't have Thanksgiving - they have a single Mother and she's a welfare queen".   AUGH!!!!!   

Well Jesus himself did not feed the hungry. To show his power he turned two fishes and a loaf of bread into enough food to feed 5,000 people who otherwise would have gone to town to buy their own food. As for the less fortunate, he says the poor you have with you always. Blessed are the poor, for they shall inherit the dirt.