This is one of my favorite scriptures:
Micah 6:8: He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Although we don’t know what God looks like, we do know what His characteristics are: compassion and mercy toward His people, especially those who are less fortunate. God is always concerned about the poor, the less fortunate, the widow, and the orphans. The prophecy in Isaiah 61, promises the Messiah who will bring salvation and hope to the lost, lonely and least.
Isaiah 61
The Year of the LORD's Favor
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is
on me,
because the LORD has anointed
me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the
brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the
captives
and release from darkness for the
prisoners,
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's
favor
and the day of vengeance of our
God,
to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in
Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of
beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of
righteousness,
a planting of the LORD
for the display of his splendor.
4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins
and restore the places long
devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
that have been devastated for
generations.
5 Aliens will shepherd your flocks;
foreigners will work your fields
and vineyards.
6 And you will be called priests of the
LORD,
you will be named ministers of our
God.
You will feed on the wealth of
nations,
and in their riches you will boast.
7 Instead of their shame
my people will receive a double
portion,
and instead of disgrace
they will rejoice in their
inheritance;
and so they will inherit a double
portion in their land,
and everlasting joy will be theirs.
8 For I, the LORD, love justice;
I hate robbery and iniquity.
In my faithfulness I will reward
them
and make an everlasting covenant
with them.
9 Their descendants will be known
among the nations
and their offspring among the
peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
that they are a people the LORD
has blessed.
10 I delight greatly in the LORD;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with
garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of
righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head
like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with
her jewels.
11 For as the soil makes the sprout
come up
and a garden causes seeds to
grow,
so the Sovereign LORD will make
righteousness and praise
spring up before all nations.
At an early age I was inspired by the life of the late Mother Teresa. When I was fourteen I saw her on the cover of a Newsweek magazine. The article explained how she brought dignity to the poor dying people in the streets of Calcutta, India. This image left a lasting impression on my life. I still thank God for the priceless opportunities to travel throughout the world to offer grace, mercy and peace in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Although I love the foreign mission field, sometimes God calls us to serve our neighbor.
On June 25, Ditty Mooney, Ann McNinch, Betty and Sandy Forbes and I teamed up with Rev. Delano Douglas, the campus minister at VSU. We prepared and served food for almost seventy people in downtown Petersburg. There is great fulfillment and spiritual blessings in serving others. We answer the call to be the hands and feet of Christ. If we don’t go, who will? If we don’t serve, who will? If we, Christians do not live out our faith and the Great Commission God will not acknowledge us on judgment day.
I use to think that my parents didn’t know what they were doing. They lived a life of serving others. This wasn’t an occasional act of kindness, but their lifestyle was serving others on a daily basis. We serve God by serving others. Our hands and feet become the hands and feet if Christ. God can use us when we’re able to move out of our selfishness, and move to allow God to us. Visiting the sick, praying for others, sharing our food, clothing, homes, and visiting the prisons are all a part of what it means to be a Christian. We are most like Jesus when we are serving others. I pray that more people will hear and answer the call to be obedient to God’s command to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the sick, and visit the prisons.
Matthew 25: 31-46, says,
31When the Son of Man comes in his
glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.
32All the nations will be gathered
before Him, and he will
separate the people one from another as a shepherd
separates the sheep from the goats.
33 He will put the sheep on his right
and the goats on his left.
34 Then the King will say to those on
his right, 'Come, you who are
blessed by my Father; take
your inheritance, the kingdom
prepared for you since the
creation of the world.
35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and
you invited me in,
36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37 Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you some thing to drink?
38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?
39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40 The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41 Then he will say to those on his left,
Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his
angels.
42 For I was hungry and you gave me
nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,
43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44 They also will answer, 'Lord, when
did we see you hungry or
thirsty or a stranger or
needing clothes or sick or in
prison, and did not help you?'
45 He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46 Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Love and Blessings,
Pastor Jan
