Doing for Those Who Cannot

' All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’  '  (Matthew 25:32-39, NIV)

 
A month or so ago, I was asked by a long-time online friend if I “knew of anyone” who would keep five boys, ages 9-2, while their mother birthed a new baby. “She lives in your area, it’s just for a few days…” Of course, after a quick mental checklist of other moms, I knew of no one who would be willing to take on such a task. After speaking with my husband, we decided to help.

As I sit with a house full of boy energy (though they are well-behaved boys), it occurs to me how easily I could have said “no,” and justifiably so. These are strange times, and the expectant mom was even more of a stranger than the solicitor of the help. Both are followers of mine via social media; I have never met either in real life. It has been a long time since we have had to manage the needs of littles. There are questions that I decided not to ask; there are assumptions that their mother decided to make. They are, indeed, the strangers mentioned in the passage above. In that context, the boys’ stay in our home is not so much about our relationship with the family as it is a depiction of our relationship with Christ.

In my last newsletter, I mentioned planting seeds, and how small deposits into our children and our communities can yield big dividends. We have spent much of our summer planting—literally—and harvesting, and giving. Yet, we have not done much for the least of these; that would include children, who are in most cases unable to do for themselves.

So, this is our challenge: what are we doing for the least of these—our children? If we strip away the curriculum, the extracurricular activities, the co-ops and all the ostentation that poses as education, what seeds are we planting? Moreover, what seeds are we planting in our community? If our sole accomplishment in this season is that we have raised smart kids, then we have barely scratched the surface of our power in homeschooling our children.

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’  (Matthew 25:40, NIV)