A woman in need
Our pastor this morning spoke on “Going as Jesus went”. He used the account of the woman who entered Simon’s house and washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, dried them with her hair and anointed them with precious ointment. We are all familiar with the event, but he brought out a point that I hadn’t considered before.
Luke 7:44 records that Jesus asked Simon
“Did you see this woman?”
Well of course Simon had seen the woman!
But Simon, did you SEE this WOMAN?
Simon had seen something that annoyed him. Simon was most likely outraged that such a woman would enter his house. Simon wondered about the Lord. Didn’t he KNOW what sort of a person she was?
“Simon, did you SEE this WOMAN?”
Last week, I saw a lady sitting on a seat in the shopping centre.
Did I see HER?
Did I see her loneliness?
Did I see her worry-lines; her despair?
Did I see the inside HER – her NEEDS?
Did I fail my Lord in failing to offer a short time of companionship,
maybe a coffee break treat in the nearby café?
Did I at least give a listening ear, a word of encouragement,
a sense of HOPE in the One who is able to give her comfort?
Did I leave her with a portion of God’s Word or a Gospel tract?
Jesus says to us today:
“Do you see this woman?”
“Do you see this man?”
“Do you see this young person?”
“Do you see this couple?”
We need to go where Jesus went – to the needy – sharing His love and compassion and sharing the good news that IN HIM is found peace and fulfilment and the strength to face our problems.
Christ has no hands but our hands
To do His work today;
He has no feet but our feet
To lead men in His way;
He has no tongue but our tongue
To tell men how He died;
He has no help but our help
To bring them to His side.
MEETING IN THE CLOUDS 
Thank you, Angela, for this look at that familiar scene . . .for this look at that woman. Praying for His eyes today to see who needs seen around me. :)
God bless you and your precious ministry!
love, deb
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Thanks Debbie. We are surrounded by people who need help or maybe just a listening ear and an understanding smile. May we always be available to the Spirit’s promptings to show His love and speak a word for Him.
Angela
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“…He has no help but our help, to bring them to His side…”
Oh, how I love this! Thank you so much for filling my soul with your lovely words.
Bee well and God bless…
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It is such a privilege to be used by Him, and yet we so often ignore it. May we always, at all times, have an open spiritual ear to His promptings and follow them in His power.
Thanks Bee.
Angela
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Angela,
How we all fail in recognizing the multitude of opportunities of minitry opened to us every day. It is truly just as you say…. do we “see” what is taking place around us?
I believe my Lord controls every thing in my life (including every step I take). The Lord has me go to a store at a specific time, on a specific date… could it be because a specific opportunity will open itself to me at that time? In many cases, I believe this is so.
My hope is, by God’s grace, I will recognize the opportunity and be faithful to the Lord in it.
May the Lord bless you Angela.
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Hi Rob
Yes, it is so true that God ordains “circumstances” in our lives. How many times we change direction, do something unplanned, go somewhere at a different time or to a different shop etc. I firmly believe my movements are for a purpose and that “circumstances” are not chance happenings but God’s movements and opportunities in ministry.
Acts 17:28 For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Angela
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Hi Angela,
A very timely message, indeed! It brought to mind, the parable of the good Samaritan. A priest saw him, that had been robbed, beaten, and left wounded and half dead, yet he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a Levite looked on him and passed by on the other side. However, the Samaritan had compassion on him, bound up his wounds, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. How many times have we like the priest and the Levite, missed out on opportunities to minister to the physical needs of an individual, which could have been a foot in the door, to minister the gospel of Jesus Christ unto them, as well? After reading your post, may all who read be moved to SEE our fellow brethren, and take every opportunity to lend a helping hand, as these opportunities are presented to us. “What would Jesus do?”
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Hi Paulette. Yes, the good Samaritan parable fits in well.
There is so much hurting and so much need all around us. We need to have our minds, our attitude, our responses, open to opportunities, firstly to help, and also to present them with the only REAL help that offers peace.
Thanks Paulette.
Angela
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Angela,
In Paul’s day, the Church truly cared for the sick, the needy, and the downtrodden. Today, we just throw a bunch of scripture at someone and then wash our hands of responsibility. I have been on the receiving end of this calloused approach, even as a Christian by church leaders. It’s easy to say, “I’ll pray for you brother/sister. God will supply all your needs according to his richness in glory.” That is certainly true, but oftentimes God supplies our needs through the Church body. If we can’t rely on our fellow believers, then to whom can we turn when life’s sledgehammer knocks us to the ground?
James 2:14-17 [NASB] says, “What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.” This entire second chapter of James puts Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan to work. Faith without works is dead.
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Absolutely true Todd.
While not diminishing the power of the Word in any way, hurting people need so much more – at least to start with.
We need to EARN their respect and the right to witness. That is why I concentrated on the listening ear and the caring compassion and the coffee break. It is amazing how some people (women anyway) “open up” when offered a cuppa. Having said that, I would not leave them without a New Testament or a tract of some sort. Being a Gideon I have a supply of New Testaments designed for this purpose. In the front are many helpful Scripture references for “times of need” and in the back the way of salvation is clearly explained.
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Angela,
Yes. A person’s heart can feel Jesus before the head does. Once the heart is open, the head responds in kind. When we care for someone’s personal needs first, he/she will be much more receptive to Jesus satisfying his/her spiritual needs afterward. This equally applies to caring for our fellow believers. How many times do we feed, clothe, lend a listening ear, or give a few extra dollars to an unbeliever, yet refuse the same to a member of our church? We will feed the homeless and pat ourselves on the back, and yet allow a fellow believer to lose his house or go hungry.
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Well said Todd. Totally agree.
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