Petoskey United Methodist Church
Weekly Devotional

April 23, 2008
By Emily Calhoon

Take Action

Have you every had a weird feeling like you should be doing something, that maybe God is calling you to do something but you are not sure what it is or afraid of what it is? God calls us to action to take care of the least in His kingdom.

He does this in Luke 10:25-37 in the story of the Good Samaritan where a Jew is robbed and beaten along the side of the road and a priest and a Levite pass him without helping and then a Samaritan, who is of a culture that are not regarded highly by Jews, comes and bandages his wounds, takes the man to an inn to be cared for and pays for everything.

Jesus again makes the point that we need to care for the least of the kingdom in Matthew 25:34-46 when He talks about the separation of the sheep and the goats. The sheep will get to live eternally with Jesus forever for they have cared for Jesus by caring for the hungry, homeless, sick and imprisoned. The Samaritan took care of Jesus when he helped the Jew. The goats who did not care for Jesus and the least of His kingdom and they will go to eternal punishment.

Taking action summed up by the commandments Jesus gives for living. Both the Golden Rule (John 13:34) and in his command in Luke 10:27 to “'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'” Loving someone requires action.

When I think of these commandments and verses I sometimes think that I am doing pretty good because I am comparing myself with other people who I think are doing less. This is not good. I am not serving God by doing this because I am overvaluing my position and being judgmental of others who I perceive as below me. I am not loving people the way God calls me to with this attitude. God calls us to be humble and to love all, not to judge and be full of pride.

God is constantly calling people (including me) to change and grow in their faith and relationship with Him and others. There is always action to be taken in your relationship with God and how He is calling you to serve others and take care of the least in His kingdom.

When I think about all the work that needs to be done to love those who feel unloved, to know Jesus better, to help people get out of poverty and have their needs met, it is overwhelming. But Jesus says that He is right here with us. He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us always as a comforter and helper.

The Samaritan was not able to help every person that was robbed and beaten but he helped one Jew. He made an impact and probably not only on that Jew. God does not call us to save the world single handedly, He calls us to be part of the solution and part of putting His creation back together, one person, one action at a time.

What is God calling you to take action on today?

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