Where can I see Jesus today? - Matthew 25:40 with a story by Toyohiko Kagawa

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 25:40 (The Message) – the full story is Matthew 25:31-46
“Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me - you did it to me.'”

A STORY – written by Toyohiko Kagawa, “Meditations,” cited in William Axling’s book, “Kagawa"

God dwells among the lowliest of men.
He sits on the dust heap among
the prison convicts.
With the juvenile delinquents.

He stands at the door, begging bread.
He throngs with the beggars
the beggars at the place of aims.
He is among the sick.

He stands in the line with the unemployed
in front of the free employment bureaus.
Therefore, let him who would meet God
visit the prison cell before going to
the temple.

Before he goes to church let him
visit the hospital.

Before he reads his Bible let him
help he beggar standing at his door.

AN OBSERVATION:
There has never been a time, except maybe during the Great Depression, when the need is so great to show acts of kindness towards the stranger in our midst. There has never been a time like this to begin to treat individuals as if they are the Christ. There has never been an opportunity to open our doors, open our minds and open our hearts to each other. There has never been …

Painfully we are made aware daily of the huge number of individuals who are losing their homes, seeking assistance at homeless shelters, losing their jobs, going for days without anything to eat. These are our brothers and sisters.

Look upon these individuals standing in front of you … and see Christ. Look into the face of the beggars or the homeless standing on the street corner selling bottles of water or the one trying to rest his/her weary body on a park bench or that person pushing a shopping cart with their entire worldly possessions … and there we will see Jesus.

There but for the grace of God … the miracle of life’s circumstances … go you or me!

PRAYER:
Help us to be sensitive to those around us. Help us to become aware of the misfortune of others and all the little blessings that we do possess. Help us appreciate the little things of life and reach out to others who simply need a hand up in life. Help us be what you have called us to be. We ask this in the humble spirit of Christ who washed the feet of his disciples. Amen