AN APPEAL TO COMPASSIONATE CONSERVATIVES:

DON'T JUST FEED THE LAMBS TWICE A YEAR

"Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, 'Do you love me?' He said, 'Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.'
"Jesus said, 'Feed my sheep."

In this passage from John, Jesus gently brings Peter back into the fold after the headstrong disciple has denied Him three times, in the hour of His need. Peter is, no doubt, depressed and blaming himself for not having the courage to speak up for Jesus only hours after professing his undying fealty. Jesus sets him straight, and then invites Peter once again, as he had originally called the disciples, "Follow me."

Jesus tells us repeatedly that the world will know we are His because of the love we show, to each other and to others. It is compassion and love that should define the behavior of a Christian. And the outward evidence of that love is that we feed his sheep.

I am President of the Board of a local interdenominational helping ministry, and I and my fellow soldiers in the armies of compassion now look toward what some might call the "easy season," but which always brings to me a pang of regret.

For it is in this season--the holiday season--that people all over the nation turn their eyes toward God, whatever they perceive him to be, and feel the tug of a charitable impulse. There is, frankly, no shortage of generosity and programs between Thanksgiving and Christmas (sometimes, as people eye their end-of-year charitable donation tax total, the season extends to the end of the year). The poor and the hungry generally are fairly well-fed, and, this season as no other, those in need can find clothing, shoes, groceries, presents for the children--all manner of material need met to ensure that everyone has a "Merry Christmas." And, as a person working in this type of ministry, let me thank all those who give from the bottom of my heart, and let you know that your generosity is truly appreciated.

But I must, at the same time, remind us all that Jesus said, "Feed my sheep"--not "Feed my sheep at Thanksgiving and Christmas." As the saying goes, "Need knows no season."

It is wonderful to provide a turkey dinner for the homeless twice a year, but let the Lord work on your heart and contemplate what it means that these, the least of these, are not going to be brought out from poverty by two good dinners and a new coat.

Every week, I see people who have fallen into poverty or onto hard times, and their schedules do not conveniently follow a calendar. Gas companies, electric companies, and grocery stores don't become much more forgiving of those unpaid bills just because we are celebrating the advent of the One who paid the price for us all. And when the season for giving has passed, the landlord still expects rent, and the children still want food.

To help these--the lonely, the least, the lost, the left out--the ministry I serve depends entirely on the generosity and love of God's people in the churches. All our expenses are paid by the churches, and all our assistance is provided by church volunteers. Although Christianity is not merely a day, nor even a season, but a complete reformation of the believer's life, even Christians seem to fall into the mindset to meet need on an artificial schedule.

In my church, we believe in "divine appointments"--that God brings to the believer's attention and into their path the needs He desires us to meet. Rick Warren, in the best-selling The Purpose-Driven Life, says that "life is a test." God's tests to us, His tests of our faith, His tests of our love, come each and every day, in a wide variety of disguises. Perhaps today He has challenged you through this message, and you are wondering whether there is more you can do than offer donations, gifts, and alms during the Christmas Season.

Rest assured, there is.

More than anything else, the ministries of Christ across this country need your prayers. But do not pray only for the ministries--pray, as well, for direction as to how God would have you bless those ministries and the people they serve. Perhaps He would have you add to your seasonal generosity with a monthly stipend to a ministry or a missionary or a program that He has laid on your heart. Perhaps He will ask you to join this army as an occasional volunteer. Perhaps He would ask you to get down in the gutter with the very least of these with a cup of cold water (or, in the winter, hot chocolate) and a kind word.

But this year, don't let the season go by without going before God with an open heart and an open mind, asking Him where your best place of ministry lies.

Because hungry children and hurting grown-ups need a Merry March and a Merry May every bit as much as they do a Merry Christmas.