"I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!" Matthew 25:40 NLT
"I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the
least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!" Matthew 25:40
NLT He pushed a buggy and always appeared to be in a hurry.
"I hate to throw away all those leftovers," my wife
said as we sat at the supper table.
Cooking for two people is challenging, and she had
prepared too much for our New Year's meal. We had eaten leftovers twice and
still had more to consume.
"What would be wrong with me warming the leftovers up
for the homeless man down the street," she asked.
"Nothing," I replied, seeing her big heart explode
with moisture in her eyes.
Recently, two homeless men had moved into our area.
One stayed in a small shack by a local business. So my wife warmed up the
leftovers and placed them in several to-go plates. We pulled up to his shack and
told him we had some food for him. His response puzzled us.
"You can take it and give it your dogs," he muttered
as he shook his head back and forth.
"But, it's home-cooked food," my wife protested.
Her pleading did no good. He became more irritated and
made more demeaning remarks. He wanted money to buy his own food but would not
take ours. Perhaps he was mentally challenged. Perhaps he feared we were trying
to poison him.
"Just leave," I finally told my wife. And we did as he
continued to rant and rave at us.
Jesus lists the thirsty, hungry, prisoners, naked,
strangers, and sick among those we should serve in His name, but He never said
our efforts would be easy, convenient, or always accepted with warmth and
appreciation.
Having this encounter with this one homeless man would
make it easy for me to stereotype all homeless people. Instead, I prayed for him
that night, asking God to soften his heart towards people who might try to help
him. And when God prompts us, my wife and I will help again.
God judges my motives, not the people's response who I
try to assist. He holds me accountable for doing the right thing whether others
appreciate it or not. And doing the right thing always feels right because it is
the right thing to do. God's love cannot be contained in a body. It must flow to
others as God designed it to.
Don't let fear, inconvenience, or bad experiences keep
you from spreading God's love.
Martin Wiles mandmwiles@gmail.com
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