I received a gift a few year back. At the time I knew it was a special telephone, one that I, with my declining cognition, would be able to use. And I did use it. At first anyway. But the new wore off quickly. Especially when it hardly ever rang; and when I tried to place calls to the five people it was programmed for, no one ever picked up.

As time went on, I kind of forgot what it was. I even forgot I had it.

In the week leading up to the end of 2023, a group of people began fasting and praying for my recovery, and although to date (written December 27, 2023), no huge changes to my cognition have been forthcoming, there have been small gains. One of these gains was that I remembered my phone. I didn’t remember what it was; but I remembered this little black box that sometimes hosted familiar voices. My wife dug it out and charged it up, and the fun began. I once again began pressing one or another of the 5 pictures on the face of my phone. Usually my calls went to voice mail, but every once in a while, someone would answer! It literally made my day! I actually didn’t mind when it went to voice mail, either. To be honest, I wasn’t really aware that it wasn’t a human answering, and even this would put a huge smile on my face that would last all day.

And then, one day, that black box actually rang. The picture of one of my kids popped up on the screen, and I heard a familiar voice! I talked about this for days. I stressed when the black box wasn’t in my pocket, and I would spend hours each day staring at the screen, willing it to ring.

And occasionally it would.

At this point I began once again pressing on those pictures, and this time, when voice mail answered, I would occasionally leave a message: “I love you son!” Whichever of my children was the recipient of that message reported to my wife that they would never erase this message from their voice mail!

Christmas 2023 came, and with it all four of my kids came home. Both of my boys, and both of the girls that they brought into our family. I was in heaven on earth. But all too soon, that wonderful few days were over and the kids went back to their respective homes. The next day, however, something glorious happened. The little black box rang, the picture of my younger son popped up on the screen, and I could again hear his sweet voice. It was a special moment. And when it happened the next day and the next, and then everyday after that, I knew that I was blessed indeed.

Sometimes it rang more than once a day, and it was my older son’s picture that popped up on the screen. Those were the most special days! I would hold on to the phone and show it to wife, trying to tell her about the phone calls, for the rest of the day!

It doesn’t take much to make someone’s day, and this is my New Year’s message for the upcoming New Year! We are here on this Earth to help one another!

Remember Jesus’ parable of the sheep and the goats? There was only one thing that separated them: Whether or not they spent time helping others! “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, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” (Matthew 25:35-36 NIV). And for this, Jesus said, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.” (Matthew 25:34 NIV)!

Interestingly, the sheep who were to be blessed didn’t remember ever helping Jesus, so Jesus had to explain: “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40 NIV)!

When my kids call me on my little black box, they aren’t just helping me, they are also helping Jesus Himself! Wow! Two for the price of one!

As 2024 draws to an end, I challenge each of you to think about how you can reach out and help one another in the upcoming New Year. Maybe you can take your neighbour for groceries. Maybe you can send some money to the poor. Maybe you can listen to and comfort your friend who has lost a loved one. Maybe you can smile at someone who seems down. And maybe, just maybe, you can call a little black box and talk to a lonely person for a couple minutes. For when you do, you can know that you just pasted a huge smile on the face of the recipient.

And even more importantly, you have served Jesus, you have fulfilled your purpose, you can be numbered amongst those to whom, in the last days, God says, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world!” (Matthew 25:34 NIV)

Inspired by Rob Chaffart
Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries