CONCERT OF PRAYER

Pray Week 964

 “The Least of These”

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 … Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these … you did it to me. (Matthew 25:36-40)

We are a society that rallies to the aid of others when a crisis hits. We are quick to get involved and help in one form or another when disaster strikes in various parts of the world. While this is all well and good these spikes in acts of love and compassion are not what the Christian walk is meant to be.

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:27)

There are the extremes of life that are among the ‘least of these’ that Jesus is challenging us to reach out to and nurture, protect, and engage with encouragement and support. The life of our unborn children is no longer protected by our nation’s laws and millions are being murdered for profit yet the majority of professing Christians will either not vote at all to elect officials that will work to protect the unborn or if they do participate in the election process they vote for a candidate that promises to protect their 401k and prosperous way of life as a matter of priority.

The other extreme ‘least of these’ is the elderly among us – our parents and grandparents. In large numbers this segment of our society are being cast aside and left to fend for themselves.

But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. (1 Timothy 5:4)

But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Timothy 5:8)

I have spent a lot of time over the last decade in nursing homes, retirement communities, assisted living centers, and hospitals. I have felt the burden of the Lord for the elderly that are lonely, forgotten, and estranged by their sons and daughters. Many are imprisoned in frail bodies. Others are imprisoned in minds afflicted with dementia. Some are imprisoned in their homes, unable to travel on their own to care for basic necessities. All long for contact, however brief, with family and friends and are encouraged by a feeling of being valued, loved and cared for when children and grandchildren reach out to them regularly.

Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. (Exodus 20:12)

May the Holy Spirit soften your heart and allow you the grace to know the burden of the Lord for the forgotten and neglected ‘least of these’ in our society beginning with your own family – parents and grandparents. May the Lord empower you to act in His love and compassion toward the elderly in your family and community, teaching your children by example that future generations will be trained up in the way they should go. (Proverbs 22:6)