As I stopped my car at a red light, I saw a man standing beside the road. He was holding a sign: NEED MONEY FOR FOOD, Anything Helps. I scrambled in my car for loose change, and I rolled down my window to give him what I had. As I drove off, I questioned myself. If that were me, and I was in that situation, I surely would want someone to reach out to me.
Some people pretend to have needs but are actually con artists. But others have legitimate needs but face difficulties overcoming destructive habits. Social workers tell us it’s better to give money to the aid ministries in our city. I swallowed hard and drove past. I felt bad, but I may have acted wisely.
God commands us: “warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak,” 1 Thessalonians 5:14.
Has God burdened your heart to help someone? Great! Now the work begins. Don’t assume you know what that person needs. Ask them to share their story, and listen. When we truly aim ‘to do what is good for each other,’ we will more readily ‘be patient with everyone’—even when they stumble (vv. 14-15).
I can honestly say, in the contents of my daily prayers, I ask God to bless me so that I can be a blessing to others. If we just stop to look around, there is always a need that can be met, on your jobs, in your neighborhoods, your church family and different organizations that meet the needs of others. I truly think that when we meet the needs of others, we put a smile on Jesus’ face. Jesus said: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me,” Matthew 25:40. After dissecting this scripture and knowing the true meaning of it, I truly look for opportunities to be a blessing to Him.
(Contact Min. Delores [Lois] Brown, Prayer Faith and Healing Ministry, at www.prayerfaithandhealingministry.org).
