​Read: Matthew 25:31-46       

There are great areas of need around the world.  From the neighborhoods of our communities to the other side of the world the opportunities to make a difference are more than we can count.  Sometimes that reality can be overwhelming.  Perhaps instead of counting the need we should be asking what we can do to help those in need.

In Matthew 25 Jesus is very clear about the importance of helping the hungry, thirsty, stranger, sick, destitute, and imprisoned.  His actual words are, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.”  The key word there is “one.”  If we are going to help anyone it must start with one and then hopefully it will extend to many others.

The story of Sir Nicholas Winton is an example of this.  He was a well to do stockbroker in London, England back in 1938 when he heard about the German Nazi’s marching into Czechoslovakia.  He read about the parents who were trying to get their children out of the country before the Nazi’s took them away to concentration camps.

Mr. Winton used two of his vacation weeks from work to fly to Prague and begin helping children find their way to safety.  After weeks and then months of work, over 600 children were saved by his efforts.  For over 50 years he humbly remained quiet about his massive effort to save the children.  

In 1988 the BBC invited him to a live television program and invited some of those 600 to sit next to him without his knowledge.  At one point of the program they all stood up around him as children who were saved by his humanitarian efforts.  He began to weep.  His effort to help one led to helping over 600.  In the years that followed he helped many mentally handicapped people and built homes for the elderly in England.

Helping a world in need begins with one and then extends to many others.  Recently, pastor and evangelist Billy Graham passed away.  I had to think about how his ministry of hope, salvation, and unity will extend on for generations.  One person who finds new life in Jesus Christ can then share that hope and new life with many others.  Just another reason for us to share the good news and do what we can for those in need.

Make it Personal:  Who is hungry, who is thirsty, who needs clothing, who needs housing, who needs a friend, who needs help?  Jesus encourages us to be on the lookout for these people in need and help them in his name.  The needs may be overwhelming if we look at the whole picture, but start with one person and then let it grow like a mustard seed (Mark 4:30-32)

Have a great week, Pastor Glen Rhodes