And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. —Colossians 3:17
Doug Nicholls writes: “While serving with Operation Mobilization in India in 1967, tuberculosis forced me into a sanitarium for several months. I did not yet speak the language, but I tried to give Christian literature written in their language to the patients, doctors, and nurses. Everyone politely refused. I sensed many weren’t happy about a rich American (to them all Americans are rich) being in a free, government-run sanitarium. (They didn’t know I was just as broke as they were!)
The first few nights I woke around 2:00 AM coughing. One morning during my coughing spell, I noticed one of the older and sicker patients across the aisle trying to get out of bed. He would sit up on the edge of the bed and try to stand, but in weakness would fall back into bed. I didn’t understand what he was trying to do. He finally fell back into bed exhausted. I heard him crying softly.
The next morning I realized what the man had been trying to do. He had been trying to get up and walk to the bathroom! The stench in our ward was awful. Other patients yelled insults at the man. Angry nurses moved him roughly from side-to-side as they cleaned up the mess. One nurse even slapped him. The old man curled into a ball and wept. The next night I again woke up coughing. I noticed the man across the aisle sit up and again try to stand. Like the night before, he fell back whimpering.
I don’t like bad smells, and I didn’t want to become involved, but I got out of bed and went over to him. When I touched his shoulder, his eyes opened wide with fear. I smiled, put my arms under him, and picked him up. He was very light due to old age and advanced TB. I carried him to the washroom, which was just a filthy, small room with a hole in the floor. I stood behind him with my arms under his armpits as he took care of himself. After he finished, I picked him up, and carried him back to his bed. As I laid him down, he kissed me on the cheek, smiled, and said something I couldn’t understand.
The next morning another patient woke me and handed me a steaming cup of tea. He motioned with his hands that he wanted a tract. As the sun rose, other patients approached and indicated they also wanted the booklets I had tried to distribute before. Throughout the day nurses, interns and doctors asked for the literature.
Weeks later an evangelist who spoke the language visited me, and as he talked to others he discovered that several had put their trust in Christ as Savior as a result of reading the literature. What did it take to reach these people with the gospel? It wasn’t health, the ability to speak their language, or a persuasive talk. I simply took a trip to the bathroom.”
When we think of serving our Lord, we normally think in terms of some formal ministry —teaching a Sunday School class, leading a Children’s choir, or going on a mission trip.
Certainly, these are an important part of serving our Lord. Without those who get involved in the ministry of our church, we could not accomplish that which the Lord has called us to do. Praise God for those who teach Sunday School, work with Acteens, GA’s, RA’s and Mission Friends, work in the Nursery and sing in our choir. Our lives would be significantly impoverished without their willingness to serve our Lord in these formal ways.
As important as these opportunities for service are, God never intends them to be the sum total of our service to Him. Every day He provides us with numerous opportunities to serve Him. Friends and neighbors, co-workers, family members, and even total strangers move into and out of our lives daily. Many of these individuals have needs which God would meet in and through you and me. Some need a listening ear; some need a helping hand; others need to hear a word about God’s plan of salvation; some need only a friendly smile and a kind word.
Meeting these needs is not a complicated process. If we will simply follow Paul’s advice, we will minister in ways we never imagined we would or could. If we will go about our daily routines with the intent of doing all in the name of the Lord, we will be amazed at the many ways God will use us to accomplish His will and purpose. In many instances, we will not even be aware we have met a need in the life of another. As Doug Nicholls learned, we can minister in the name of Jesus in and through even the simplest and most mundane activities of this life when we do all in the name of the Lord.
In the days and weeks ahead, let each of us do whatever we do with the intent of glorifying Jesus. Let us allow Him to work in and through our lives in such a way that others will see Him and will experience His love and grace. It might surprise you what the Lord will do in and through you!
I love you and thank God for the privilege of serving Him with you.
Love,
