To The Least

‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’ Matthew 25:31-46

Church folks love to talk about all the outreach we do. We love showing off all that we do. Yet, too often, we only participate in organized activities, and daily ignore the beggar on the street, the hungry neighbor nearby and criticize the mother taking welfare so their children can survive. We are a country with so much wealth and so many blessings, yet there are too many migrants and refugees sleeping in cage-like places with little food and water. We are called by God to share what we can - a cup of water, a visit, some food or some clothing. We are reluctant, yet as we give ourselves away, we are blessed beyond measure.

Tender Creator, you heart is with the suffering

you call us all to see the needs around us

to look in the faces of siblings near and far

and offer what we can to reduce their pain.

We are reluctant, afraid and tight-fisted

believing our blessings are deserved

thinking we are righteous and smart

we neglect those you love the most.

Let our lives be always of service here

make mercy and compassion our way

help us to be truly grateful for our blessings

as we give so that other may know your love. Amen.