The God Who Stays: Life Looks Different With Him by Your SideSample

God Stays with Those in Need

I love Eugene Peterson’s translation of Matthew 10:5–8 in The Message, where Jesus said,

“Don’t begin by traveling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers. And don’t try to be dramatic by tackling some public enemy. Go to the lost, confused people right here in the neighborhood. Tell them that the kingdom is here. Bring health to the sick. Raise the dead. Touch the untouchables. Kick out the demons. You have been treated generously, so live generously.”

Wow. We’ve been treated generously, so live generously. I can’t help but notice any hint of apathy anywhere in this command, but the thing I love about these verses is how they point to the truth that loving the world can begin in your neighborhood.

God has taught me the importance of serving and the power of simply sitting with people in need. I don’t think you have to travel the world to experience this, but I’ve learned that when you come close to the world’s needs, you also find yourself close to Jesus. That sentence works in reverse order, too, doesn’t it? The closer you are to Jesus, the closer you’ll find yourself to the needs of the world He’s calling you to pay attention to.

We were visiting a Compassion village not far from the capital city. There was a river nearby, and the tide was very low, causing a stench in the surrounding neighborhood that was something. I remember stepping into the village and feeling as if Compassion’s work introduced a bright light shining through in the middle of the violence, poverty, and darkness all around us. I was introduced to another little boy my family sponsors and was told he was very shy. Not knowing how else to communicate with him, I knelt to his level, made eye contact, and smiled.

It’s hard to explain, but I experienced a moment where I became aware of the full scene: the violence outside in the streets, the smell from the trash and the river, the extreme heat, the orphans all around me, and the people who had dedicated their lives to serving Jesus in that place—and somehow it was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life. I didn’t want to be anywhere else in the world. The kingdom of God, the very presence of God in that place, was tangible in a way I have witnessed only a few times. Immanuel was in every square foot of that room. I was witness to the presence of God with those little orphans. I was fully awake to what God was doing in the world. I was experiencing one of the catalyst moments that would reorient my faith forever. At that moment, I was a witness to the “witness” of the God who stays. That moment inspires me to keep doing something each day to change the world for the better.

I get so overwhelmed by how much need there is in the world. I don’t know about you, but it can make me feel helpless and distant. I often get busy managing my own little space and focusing on tours and bills and recording sessions, and I forget what it looks like to truly make a difference. God teaches me repeatedly that His command to love one another isn’t super complicated. In The Message version of Matthew 10, the chapter ends with Jesus challenging His listeners:

“This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance” (vv. 41–42).

It can be as simple as when my wife, Emily, arranges a dinner to be delivered to a family in need or when I make time to go and pray with a friend. It can be like my Cincinnati friends skipping a Saturday at the ball field to go to church and make food packets for Haiti. Or it can be simply sitting in the presence of the people who need you. You don’t have to travel to Haiti, Africa, or El Salvador to do God’s work. Caring for people in need usually starts with small, faithful acts of love. That is when the “witness” of God gets real.

Those moments foster a beautiful responsibility. They reorient your life so that you don’t get so wrapped up in the business side of life that you forget the kingdom business. James 2:15–17 says,

“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

Our faith is dead and useless unless we are willing to do the work and love one another. God’s love and grace bring with it a beautiful cost. That beautiful cost to you is a sacrifice that will transform you from the inside out.

Respond

How has God asked you to sacrifice for someone in need?

Write a brief prayer asking Jesus to help someone you know who is in need.

Prayer

Lord and Savior, may I be sensitive to those around me who are hurting and in need. Use me! Amen.