Do you remember the story of Jesus feeding the 5000? Of course you do. It’s a popular Bible story. Jesus was wanting some alone time but the crowds found out where he was and they made the hike to go see him. “And when [Jesus] went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick” (Matt 14:14). Then he went on to provide them with dinner. Jesus was always serving others.
But do you remember what happened right before this story? Jesus had just received some troubling news: his cousin, John the Baptist, had just been executed. And we can tell that this affected Jesus because he withdrew for a while by himself. But later that day he got busy serving others.
We have a huge opportunity right now to focus on ourselves and woes we are enduring: Our normal way of doing things has been shaken up like a snow globe, we don’t know if/when things will return to ‘normal.’ If you wanted to just become a hermit and just focus on yourself, well right now, you kind of get a free pass to do that.
But that’s not what our Lord did. He didn’t focus on himself but on the needs of others and he got busy. Have you been checking on the people who may be forgotten during this time? Are you still giving to church and to charities? Are you being a light in the darkness on social media? Now more than ever you are needed to serve.
Today, pray that God will show you the opportunities he has prepared for you to show His love. And then get busy.