Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

I assure you, when you did it to
one of the least of these my
brothers and sisters, you were
doing it for me!
Matthew 25:40 NLT

Reflection:

Loving the Least

I remember a poster on a dorm-room
wall during my days in college. The
poster was a picture of a homeless
man lying in a dirty gutter holding a
bottle in a paper bag by his side.
The inscription on the bottom was
a quote from Mother Teresa. It read,
"You love Jesus only as much as
the person you love the least."

For all we don't understand about
the life of Jesus and the true nature
of God, there is one truth that he
made completely clear. The Christian
faith is about service and humility. It's
about helping those who can't help
themselves. It's about loving others
more than we love ourselves—even
the most unlovable among us.

What is the sign of true followers?
Is it the amount of knowledge that
we have? Is it the money we give
to missions? the degrees we've earned?
the number of people we've preached
to? the hours we've spent worshiping
in church? the books we've read or written?

According to Jesus, the sign of the
saved is their love for the least.

It is said that when Francis of Assisi
left his wealth behind to seek God, he
stripped naked and walked out of the
city. The first person he encountered
on his journey was a leper on the side
of the road. He first passed him, then
turned back. He embraced the leper
in his arms before continuing his
journey. A few steps down the road
he turned and saw that the leper
was gone. Until his dying day,
Francis of Assisi was convinced that
the leper was Jesus. Even if he was
wrong, he was right.

adapted from Embracing Eternity by
Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins and
Frank M. Martin,, Tyndale House
Publishers (2004), p 3

Prayer:

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred . . . let me sow love
Where there is injury . . . pardon
Where there is doubt . . . faith
Where there is despair . . . hope
Where there is darkness . . . light
Where there is sadness . . . joy
O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled . . . as to console
To be understood . . . as to understand,
To be loved . . . as to love
For it is in giving . . . that we receive,
It is in pardoning, that we are pardoned,
It is in dying . . . that we are born to eternal life.