He Came to Meet My Need

“But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.” James 1:22

“What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?” James 2:14-16

Christmas is about giving, and it is in that thought that I pass on this story I read for you to think on today –

He said his name was James. “I been back on the bottle fer the last month” Tired, cold, and hungry, James is one of thousands of jobless, homeless “street people.” But what made James more than just another street person was the fact that he had stopped me – I could not avoid him.

“What an inconvenience,” I thought. Several plans for getting rid of him quickly came to mind. But they all melted as meaningless excuses when I heard my Savior say, “I was hungry, but you did not feed Me” (Matthew 25:42). Would I minister to the physical needs of this man in Jesus’ name or harden my heart and “get to work”?

“What if I’m just being taken advantage of?” I thought. Then came His words of reassurance: “I was taken advantage of. I was misunderstood. I was despised and rejected, but it was all in the eternal plan of God – and it all led to the cross.”

“You may laugh at this,” I said as James sat over a hot breakfast plate, “but I want you to know that I’m doing this for you in Jesus’ name. If I say I love God but don’t care for your needs, I’m the worst kind of liar.” His reply? “I’m not laughing. Thank you.”