I haven't blogged in a couple of days, because I have been stewing on something. Today, I'll share.
I'm reading through the book of James right now, and chapter two has really grabbed my attention. This section of scripture takes two different topics and ties them together in a way that I need to speak about. I need to speak on them, because we Christ-followers mess these fundamental things up all the time.
We read this chapter, and believe what it says, but most of the time we neglect what it commands. That neglect will be amplified three weeks from tomorrow. That will be the day after Christmas. That will be two days after the red kettles are collected. That will be the day after the Christmas season's giving comes to an end. The day after Christmas, the poor and hurting will be suffering for another eleven months.
That is the part that has me bothered.
I've witnessed -- and been a part of -- too many churches that push for Christmas care for the poor and/or orphaned, but once January hits, these people get the treatment mentioned in the first part of James 2.
In this section, James encourages believers to not show partiality. It's human nature to want to shun people who are less fortunate than us. James saw this problem too, and he called out the Christians who were doing it. His words should burn our hearts today as well.
Too often, we see Christians and Christian churches doing what James describes in verses 15 and 16, "If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?"
What's the proof? Look around. Every community, every neighborhood has people in great need. Their need doesn't end when the holidays pass. Their struggles continue on into the next year.
So, as we move through this giving season, I would encourage you to determine to be a difference maker in the lives of the needy in your community -- and do it all year long.
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