“By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” (Hebrews 13:15-16)
It is a great morning when God awakens you after a long, peaceful night of rest and the first words you speak – even before you get out of bed – are “Thank you.” How blessed we are to be able to walk through our homes and let the words of appreciation and thanksgiving continue to flow from us. Thank you, Jesus, for the clothes I have. Thank you I awoke in a warm, dry home this morning. Thank you I have fresh water to drink and with which to make COFFEE! Hallelujah! Thank you I have a sanitary place to flush away the waste from my home. Thank you for my food. The thanks just flows!
It isn’t enough, however, to just give thanks for all these (and many other) blessings in our lives. Paul (or whomever the author is) continues – “but to do good and to communicate forget not…” That word communicate, which we equate with talking, goes much deeper than just saying the right things. Communicate, as used in this verse, means to contribute, to join alongside, to fellowship, to live out what we are thankful for. As with Abraham and the others, we have been blessed to be a blessing. God told Abraham that he would be blessed and that the world through him would be blessed.
How about you, my friend? Are the people with whom you come into contact blessed because they met you today? I think of the old movie “It’s A Wonderful Life.” A friend of mine just brought that movie up in our conversation yesterday. In that movie, George Bailey wishes he had never been born. Needless to say he was having a bad day. The whole story line of that movie was to show how the world would have been different had his wish been granted. Look back at your own life. How many people’s lives have you touched – either directly or indirectly – just by your presence? We never know how much it means to someone we meet when we tell them they have a pretty smile, or beautiful eyes, or how much you appreciate their happy personality. We may never find out how many people were saved that one day because of something we said to them. Words have power in them, yet we often treat them so cheaply.
But our words are only the beginning. In our town we have blessing boxes sprinkled around in different sections of the city. In these boxes (set on pedestals) people are able to share canned goods, non-perishable items, boxed foods, drinks, etc. with those who are homeless or less fortunate. Have you seen these type of boxes in your area? If so, have you ever put things in them? If you are like me, your pantry is jam-packed full of canned goods – many of which we have forgotten were even in there! What about clothes? Do you have clothes in your home you haven’t worn for months or years? It happens! Don’t take them to the Salvation Army or Goodwill where they will be resold for a profit. Put them into these blessing boxes. That hoodie you have lying around and never wear may just keep someone warm during the cold nights outside. Does your church or another organization in your hometown provide a coat and glove giveaway program for the less fortunate? Donate your things to them. Oh, how about participating in the actual giveaway when it happens? You are blessed to be a blessing.
Have you ever volunteered your time serving food at a homeless shelter? Every year the Salvation Army in our town is open and serving food on Thanksgiving and Christmas. I strongly encourage you to start a tradition with your family (or just by yourself if that’s the case) of serving those less fortunate around you.
Don’t wait, however, for the holidays or some special date on the calender. Our lives are meant to be spent in the service of those around us. And for goodness sake, don’t blow the trumpet before you so that others see your good deeds and give you glory. Do it humbly, quietly, and as unto God. The Bible tells us that those who give to the poor are giving to the Lord and He will repay. The Bible also says there are those who give and are made fat (blessed over and above what they gave). I have seen this play out so many times over the years. We don’t give to get. We give to say “thank you.” We thank God that we are able to give – that we have extra to share with others in need. And by so doing, God will see to it that you have more to give. As we open our hands and hearts to those around us, God opens His hand to us.
Being a Christian, being a godly person living a godly life, is so much more than just saying the right things and not doing the wrong things. It is our life! And it is practical. May you find yourself, occasionally, being taken advantage of? Perhaps. But let God take care of those situations. You are called to live a godly live representative of Him in the world. Oh, and if the situation you encounter calls for praying for somebody, definitely do that! If it calls for a healing, then provide the healing through the power of God that lives and flows through you. See how easy it becomes, then, to live godly in a world full of sin? We are the salt and light in the world. We have the power of the Holy Spirit flowing through us just as Jesus had when He ministered here on the earth. I think of a little book I read years ago by Lillian Yeoman. In that book she writes how she knew she was called to be a healer in the Name of Jesus. Yet she never seemed to find that flow – to establish that ability to let God heal others. She would pray, she would cry, she was desperate in her desire to fulfill His calling on her life, yet nothing happened. She wrote in that book that one day as she lay on her bathroom floor begging God to release that power in her life, He spoke to her. His words were both cutting and funny at the same time. “Look at where you are right now.” As she looked around her bathroom, she was near the toilet. God said to her, “The toilet doesn’t need healed. Go where there are people who need the healing, then the power will flow.” Lo and behold, as she went, it did, they were, and He opened her up to her ministry.
What about you? Do you see needs in the people around you today? I challenge you to walk with eyes wide open and heart attuned to the Spirit of God living within you. When He calls attention to something, listen to His leading. If you see someone in need of a coat, give them yours. If you see someone scrounging around for food, buy them a meal if you can. Do you see someone discouraged? Give them words of encouragement. Whatever the need, meet it in Jesus’ Name. If you will, He will, and they will be blessed. You are blessed to be a blessing.
Be blessed.
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