How to be a Light to the World part 2: Help those who are in need

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In today’s message we continue in our series on how to be a light to the world.  Please be sure to check out our other messages in this series:

• How to be a Light to the World part 1: Acts of Kindness 
• How to be a Light to the World part 3: Do no harm
• How to be a Light to the World part 4: Honor your temple
• How to be a Light to the World part 5: Pray

As a recap, here are the topics we will be exploring in this series:

• Show kindness
• Help those who are in need
• Do no harm
• Honor your temple (body)
• Pray

In this second message in our series, let’s dive into how we can help those who are in need.

Of course, the world is full of opportunities to help others.  Where to even start? At every turn there is poverty, loss and pain just to name a few ways our humanity is in suffering.

Let’s explore some of the ways we can help others in need day to day:

• Practice Kindness
• Offer your time
• Donate items you are no longer using
• Support a cause important to you
• Smile
• Express gratitude
• Ask how you can help
• Listen
• Teach

There are a variety of ways we have listed here.  Some require very little, such as a smile to a stranger or practicing kindness to a loved one.  Others may require more of your time, such as donating items you are no longer using.

How to help those who are in need

What ways has God placed on your heart to help others in need?  How have you helped someone in need recently?

Is there someone at work or school that you have noticed is having a difficult time? Perhaps they are struggling with their work or seem to have a solemn mood all of a sudden? It may be an opportunity for you to ask how you can help.

Do you walk to work?  Perhaps there is an individual that you regularly see that is homeless along your path.  This may be an opportunity to ask if you can purchase a meal for the individual. You never know if you may be the only person that day that is willing to offer them a way to eat.  

Looking for an opportunity to help the homeless? Find a homeless shelter in your area at https://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/

Is there a cause that is important to you? Why not set aside some of your money to donate to the cause on a monthly basis?  By donating to a cause you can be part of the solution to solving the problem.

Why not set aside some of your money to donate to the cause on a monthly basis? 

Do you have a spare room full of items that you know are useful but are no longer useful to you?  How about organizing a weekend to collect the things you have not used in the last 6 months and donate them to a local thrift store?  With your donation, someone you will never meet may find usefulness with something that you no longer need and be able to buy it for pennies on the dollar!

These are just a few of the ways that we can take it upon ourselves to help others in need.  

One of the most wonderful things about walking with God is recognizing that often, your walk with him can and will go beyond just you.  When you find yourself in a posture of seeking to serve God, he will most certainly use you to be of assistance to others.

God may use you and your life experiences to shed light of what you learned to someone else.  

If you had told me a year ago I would be recording Youtube videos and podcasts about my walk with God, I would have definitely given you a look. 

If you had told me a year ago I would be recording Youtube videos and podcasts about my walk with God, I would have definitely given you a look. 

The reason I am here talking with you is a great illustration of this.  If you had told me a year ago I would be recording Youtube videos and podcasts about my walk with God, I would have definitely given you a look.  I may have responded with something like.  “I am an introvert”, “I am not a good speaker”, “I don’t have much to say”.  On and on.  I can relate to Moses when he spoke to God at the burning bush.  “I am not well spoken”, “I can’t”, “I don’t know how.”  Yet in still, here I am speaking with you. 

What I did not know a year ago.  What I did not know even earlier in all of my life experiences is that God would use me to reflect on my journey with him to share what I learned with others who may have similar experiences in their life. 

I’d love to share some of the ways that I believe God ordered my steps to help others in need. I don’t say these things to somehow score points with you, I say this to prepare you for how God may use you to help someone in need.

• Persons who are homeless – either to purchase a meal or to purchase a gift card to a grocery store.
• Persons who are experiencing pain and loss.
• Persons who are in crisis in their home
• Persons who are overcome with depression or anxiety.
• Persons who are dealing with addiction.
• Persons who are dealing with doubt about their faith and even doubt about God

   

In all of these cases, I believe God steered my steps towards them and steered their steps towards me.  I believe he timed things in such a way that I would encounter a person dealing with a particular thing after he taught me what to do.  After he taught me how to trust him.  After he taught me what it means to serve him. 

Without a doubt, I believe that as I grew to trust in God and hold a desire in my heart to serve him, he would give me the words to speak to each individual in fellowship.  I believe that the Holy Spirit guided me and the other individual in prayer.

Just as I am sharing how God has used me to help others in need, I want to invite you to ask God how he can use you to help others in need.

Just as I am sharing how God has used me to help others in need, I want to invite you to ask God how he can use you to help others in need.

Ask God to use you to help others in need

God will do a spectacular thing in you, through you.  He will use your specific circumstances and outcomes.  He will use your moments of despair and pain and loss and how you handled each situation.  He will use your journey of learning and growing in your faith to help someone else who is learning and growing in their faith.

He will use you to provide the wisdom you have gained last week or last month or over the last decade to someone you just met 5 minutes ago.  This wisdom will lead and guide this other individual on the path that God is orchestrating for them.

The way you may help someone in need may surprise you.  It may not be monetary or material or even your time. It may not be obvious at first sight but of course God knows all the things that each of us needs.  Here is an example of what I mean by that.

Just last week I had a conversation with a stranger in the church parking lot.  We got to talking about chit chat and found our way talking about scripture.  I learned that this individual loved the Lord, trusted God and went to church and felt strong in her faith but had not yet read the Bible.  This individual was significantly older than me. I share this detail because I think I assumed someone older than I and attending church would have read the Bible.

I shared with her the benefits I had in my adult life from reading scripture,  even explaining there were BIble plans widely available to help you chip away at reading over the course of time, even up to 2 years.  She even asked if she should read it from the front cover to the back as you do most books.  I was able to explain that in my 2nd pass of reading the Bible, I found the chronological BIble plans to be very helpful and allow me to absorb the material in a more effective way.  

Now, I did not ask God to send someone to me that had never read the Bible but I did ask him to use me as he saw fit to share the wisdom he has imparted unto me.

Now, I did not ask God to send someone to me that had never read the Bible but I did ask him to use me as he saw fit to share the wisdom he has imparted unto me.   I believe this conversation about scripture was just one way he used me to impart wisdom to another and perhaps even guide her to scripture that will strengthen her faith and bring her closer to God.   Not only did I not know I would be sharing my experience in scripture but I bet she didn’t know she would be receiving some advice from someone in the church parking lot!

Helping others in need can be such an amazing gift.  There are many ways that we can make time in our day and our lives to help others.  Some just take a moment but can have a profound effect on someone, even their entire lives.  One of the most powerful ways we can help others in need is to ask God to use us to help others. 

Asking Him to put us in the path of individuals that are in need and to equip us with the words, the wisdom, the tools and resources to lift, to guide and to support.  I encourage you to ask God today and every day to be a vessel for him and his light into the world.