Worship That Motivates Service

Worship That Motivates Service

You were doing it to me! Mt 25:40 (NLT)

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37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:37-40 (NIV)

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Lloyd had been born with some developmental challenges. At an early age, he was
placed into a government facility where he lived with about 50 others. I first met
Lloyd when he was 35 years old. The day I saw him, he was wearing underwear
briefs and nothing else. He had favourite places to stand throughout the day and
he would rotate to the three or four sites with an awkward walk.

My purpose in visiting this government facility was to meet Lloyd and to see if we
could provide support for him in a community home closer to his natural family.
A few months later, we opened a lovely house and Lloyd was one of the
first two individuals invited to this new, cozy home.

On his first day, he indicated that he was upset. Change is difficult for most of us.
Change, for Lloyd, was entirely out of his experience. Within a week, the house had
been badly abused. The furniture and walls were soiled. During my first meal with
this new family, I watched Lloyd grab spaghetti in his hands and then reach
over to pull the hair of the young lady to his right.

The tension was building and the staff finally made a very forceful request noting
that either Lloyd left or they would. It was just at that time that one of them read
the last half of the 25th chapter in Matthew’s gospel. At a house meeting, Lloyd
became Jesus — imprisoned in a unique body and wired up in a different way
from the rest of us, but they saw, in Lloyd, an opportunity to minister to Jesus.

A year later I met Lloyd at a swank government office. The senior staff person
accompanied Lloyd to the meeting. Lloyd wore a Harris tweed jacket and hat.
He was carrying a briefcase! Lloyd sat through this meeting with his family,
government case managers and two friends from Christian Horizons.

A miracle had taken place. The miracle was in the lives and understanding of the
people who had been hired to support and love the people in Lloyd’s new home.
They had come to see Jesus in the service they were providing to Lloyd and
to the others in that unique community home.

Have you considered the special privilege that is yours today? You have this day to
serve Jesus. Who do you consider least worthy of your love and respect? Is there a
person who is wired up differently from you and who upsets your desire for peace
and fulfillment? He might not be in prison. He may not have a diagnosed illness.
He could be rich or poor. “I assure you, when you do it to one of the least of
these my brothers and sisters, you are doing it to Me.” (Mt 25:40, NLT)

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Heavenly Father, help me to see You when I undertake my rather mundane tasks
today. I find that I often lose my perspective and fall into the trap of evaluating my
efforts according to some sense of progress or objectively measured achievement.
Refresh me with Your Spirit of love and encouragement. Amen.

-Noel Churchman

Noel was the Executive Director of Christian Horizons form 1976 to 2001. The devotionals we will be using are from a book he wrote in 2005 called “Walking with God”. Noel’s reflections are grounded in his experiences as an educator, and provider of supports for individuals with exceptional needs as well as his life as a dedicated follower of Christ.