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? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. - James 2:15-17
As we approach Thanksgiving it is important for Christians to extend the cause for thankfulness to all people in our sphere of influence. It is not enough that we are thankful for our own blessings. We must help those with less to see that despite their shortcomings they still have much to be thankful for. The first way we can do so is to remind them (and ourselves) that everything we have God has provided for us. “John answered, ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.’” - John 3:27. Even the poor in Christ have much to be grateful for.
With this in mind, we now take our blessings to the next step in Christian love: to share our blessings with others in need. We always share our good gifts with others among our family and friends at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and throughout the year but what about those around us who don’t have that advantage? What about the poor, the homeless, and the hungry? We are called by the Gospel to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace.” - 1 Peter 4:10. This passage specifically regards the gifts of the Holy Spirit but it can easily be extended to all the graces we have received from God, including temporal blessings such as clothing, food, and housing.
It does no one any good to merely chant blessings to someone in dire need of physical necessities. We must go from merely praying for others to saying, ‘what can I do for others’ in addition to our prayers? The hungry must eat. The naked must be clothed. The homeless must be sheltered. The sick must be attended to. Helping them with their bodily needs as well as their spiritual needs lightens the burdens of these souls. We must see to the corporeal provisions of those who are without. This is something for which Christ commands us - “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’” - Matthew 25:34-36. Jesus tells us that the result of our treating the needs of others will result in our inheritance in His kingdom, prepared for us from the foundation of the world!
Let us all put forth the Christian effort to help those in need not just as the holidays approach, but everyday of every week, month, and every year. Let us cultivate the habits that show our Christian love so God’s glory may be known to all.
As we go forward, we must remember that God sees every action taken by man. But more important: He sees every motivation as well. Making sure we ‘get a receipt’ for our generosity sucks the spiritual fruit away from the tree of our heavenly reward. The fruit withers on the tree when our giving away becomes a veiled way of ‘getting back.’ Forget the receipt! Is it not a gift we are giving? Do we require a receipt when we give birthday gifts and Christmas gifts? Think of how ridiculous the idea of a receipt for a gift is. The gift is no longer from our hearts; it’s now all about our wallets.
Let us all go beyond the earthly honor that the world associates with giving. “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. . . But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” - Matthew 6:1, 3-4. God loves the motives and the gifts of our humble hearts. This is God’s will for us. Let us seek how and who we may help this holiday season and throughout the years ahead.
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