REACH OUT. Seek the one, says the Lord

I was talking to the Lord this morning about how far below and not in line with the Word much of the church is in many things, but this morning it was regarding simple “Jesus” kindness and love towards each other.

For example, not once but many times, I’ve known widows and single moms with fatherless children who were hurting and going through terrible things and who regularly go to church or have been home bound because of a sick child and were “invisible” to the church. People knew they were suffering, hurting, etc., and literally no one, zero brothers and sisters even reached out to even pray with them. None.

Not saying it to boast. At. All. Because, it’s simply what Word says to do but sharing because maybe it will help one church or person be the spark and change in his/her church.

On behalf of widows/single moms with fatherless children, I’ve tried to arrange home ministry visits (multiple times) with very large churches in their area as well as at least a handful of churches in their area in general, and no one was “discipled enough” in any of them to visit a widow and her sick child to minister to them. They literally said, “No, we don’t do that.” What is so heartbreaking for me to bear is that this behavior most often comes from church leadership that is supposed to know the Word better than anyone. Who is supposed to be making disciples, so the load of helping others is not on them (a few people) but on the entire discipled flock. Supposed to be.

The Word, in many places, tells us that we take an active not passive role in blessing others.

We don’t wait for them to have to beg and beg to be seen and helped. No, we love Jesus so much that we actively reach out, seek them, make sure they are okay. Need prayer, food, etc. But my observation on many occasions is that these widows and their children were mere inconveniences and not potential good donors, not important enough to them in some way to bother with them. They’d had to practically beg to be seen and heard by their brothers and sisters and shepherds and remind them of their (her and children) existence. This is utter biblical ignorance and not doing the Word.

The Word says in Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.” 

God speaks this in command form. We actively do these things. The widow and fatherless child doesn’t have to beg to be seen, helped, ministered to, etc. NO! The church knows the Word (or should) and is very intentional about doing it and making enough disciples so all are helped and blessed among them. I’m using widows, etc. as an example here, but all brothers and sisters among the church should be cared for, about, and sought out.

Prayer

Father, again I cry out. Shake the church awake. I prophesy to the church, ARISE, you sleepers. Shake the scales and blackness off the hearts of Your people, Lord God. Set their Spirits on fire to live Your Word in Jesus’ name, amen.

More related verses

1 John 3:17-18, “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.”

James 2:15-16, “If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, and one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?”

Matthew 25:32-40, “All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of 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 took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”