The last post I wrote may have come off as coming down on people for not reading their word. I felt convicted, and i'm repenting by being positive and encouraging to other people who are doing their best to live life in the light every day :) we are all called to speak life, not death.
Please take your time to read through this post, and comment below if you have feedback or criticism :)
Matthew 25:31-40 ESV
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who 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 drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'
This scripture shows that Jesus will recognize those who meet the needs of his children. Because the spirit of the lord lives within the followers of christ when they accept him as their lord and savior, doing for others out of compassion is the same as obeying Jesus which is doing for both Jesus and the least of his children.
This is reminiscent of his character in the earlier in Matthew, where even he did for his children what he would want done for him. He had compassion on his followers and did not leave anyone broken, or hungry.
Matthew 15:29-32 ESV
Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel. Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."
Jesus taught to love with genuine affection, and to not turn away people who are in need of sustenance and compassion. But not just to give, to love, genuinely care about people
John 13 34-35 NIV “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
We are all called to encourage one another, 2nd Corinthians 12:13 Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.
Someone once said, compassion is easy in theory, but in reality it costs you. Another person said, to love is to be
vulnerable. When you take a person into your home, your loving them, your encouraging them, and your sustaining them. This is a wonderful thing, but it costs you. Time, and money, and emotional energy are poured into a person who is under your roof, which makes the sacrifice so much more meaningful.
Imagine the impact you have giving a homeless man 1$. They MIGHT get a candy bar, and sit on the street corner for another 10 years trying to survive.
Now, think of the impact you would have on someone's life by taking in a man, giving him a warm place to stay, food to eat, and community to love him. This person is now emotionally filled with joy, and his body and mind finally able to focus on bigger things like work, and finding a place to live. In 5 years time this man could get a degree, get a job, purchase a small apartment or house, and finally make progress in life because of your sacrifice. Meanwhile his counterpart, the person you gave a dollar to, might be dead from malnutrition and exposure.
This is the real world application, and real world consequences, for taking someone into your home to care for them. Thanks to Ginger Jones Sprouse, and other kind, generous people who truly understood the pain and struggle of living with no support, no assets, and no skills, we see the positive results of providing for our neighbors, as we would want done for us.
In a story written by dailymail.com we hear the incredible testimony of what is possible when we have compassion for someone, and provide for them.
“Ginger Jones Sprouse saw 32-year-old Victor Hubbard, sitting on a corner in Clear Lake City near Houston, Texas, every day as she drove to work. Whenever she spoke to him, he asked her how she was and told her to be safe. After contacting local authorities and others in the community to learn more about him, Mrs Jones Sprouse discovered he went to the corner every day in the hope that his mother who abandoned him three years earlier would come back.
Mrs Jones Sprouse moved him in with her after being told by authorities there was nothing they could do because he was not breaking the law.
Mrs Jones Sprouse, who has two teenage sons, has given him a job at her cookery school, arranged healthcare including prescriptions for mental illness and glasses, and raised $25,000 through a GoFundMe page to pay for future accommodation.
'He never asked for any money, he never asked for anything. Sometimes he would refuse. If he'd already eaten that day and you offered him food he'd say "I'm OK, I already ate". He's extraordinarily honest' she said.
She started her mission by asking local police and social services for help. But because he was not breaking the law, no one would claim responsibility for him.
'Everybody knew him, knew of him. They said he's not a danger to himself or to anyone and he's not bothering anyone so they couldn't help him.'It was frustrating to me because this was someone who obviously needed help.'
She then set up the Facebook page but when the weather turned colder, Mrs Jones Sprouse brought him home with her. She then beefed up her online efforts to get him help and attracted hundreds of offers of help. Her first port of call was a doctor who could diagnose his mental illness. Mrs Jones Sprouse chose not to disclose what conditions he suffers but said it was clear from the beginning that he needed treatment. With no healthcare of his own, she set up the GoFundMe page to meet the cost. It also paid for Victor to stay in a hotel when Mrs Jones Sprouse was out of town. He now lives with her and her husband Dean full time and he works with her at her cookery school. He also has a job in a burger restaurant where he greets guests and cleans in the dining room.
'He helps us clean and wipe tables and he talks to our guests. My goal for him is just to have a normal life - to be stable and happy.'
Since the Facebook page took off, Victor has had his eyes tested, been to the dentist, and has thrown a party to thank his new friends for their support. More than 200 people showed up to it. Mrs Jones Sprouse said the change in him since she took him in was that he seemed finally able to relax.
'There's a sense of relief about him. He laughs a lot. Sometimes he laughs a lot about things that aren't really even that funny but he just seems calmer, he seems joyful. 'It's like there's a sense of "it's OK, I'm home."'
In a video message to his friends, Victor he said felt he could accomplish 'anything' because of her. She is now appealing for continued help to pay for his care.
‘It is unlikely he will be able to live independently but she is eager to settle him in to a 'normal life'. 'I just think of him as part of our family. 'Part of me feels very motherly towards him. I think he will probably always need a degree of supervision. 'One of our goals was to get his identification then another is to maybe get a bank account of his own. 'He is welcome to live with me and my family for as long as he wants to,' she said.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4316910/Incredible-story-Texas-mother-took-homeless-man.html#ixzz50xu1xIIp
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Merry Christmas, and special thanks to Ginger Jones Sprouse for her compassion, vulnerability, and and sacrifice :)