Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC
Tuesday, March 9
By Louise Zirkle, March 19, 1979
Compassion to Serve
Read: Matthew 25:40
“Verily, I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
Leviticus 19:18
“Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”
These words mean much to me because they epitomize the Christian obligation to reach out in sympathy and compassion to serve one’s fellowman.
Our Christian compassion and service to others is a direct obligation stemming from the two great commandments to love God supremely and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
Our place in the kingdom of God at all times depends on our caring and outgoing concern for those in need. No matter whether it be to feed the hungry or minister to the sick, this we should do in Christ’s name.
Recently, the Lord gave me an opportunity to serve Him when I offered a poor and very ill woman a ride as she prepared to call a taxi to take her home from a doctor’s office. I just happened to be walking by the telephone booth at that time. I knew she couldn’t afford a taxi and I could see she was ill. Something made me turn around and offer to take her home. Looking at me with almost disbelief, she willingly accepted the ride. Upon arriving at her home, which was several miles away, she asked me what she owed me. I assured her that she owed me nothing and that it was my pleasure to bring her home. With tears in her eyes and with a grateful heart, she smiled and said, “God bless you!” What more reward could anyone want! I drove away feeling ten feet tall and praising the Lord for letting me serve Him this way. What I had done seemed so little and yet it meant so much to this stranger in need.
Prayer
Help us, our Father, not only in this Lenten season, but always, to see that there are lonely hearts to cherish and people to help as the days go by, and make us ever mindful of the needs of others. Amen.
