Pastor’s Bible Reading Schedule:
James 1-3
Jim is blind. Lisa has a mentally handicapped daughter. Barbara is deaf. Brad is an alcoholic. Judy, a mother with three children, survives on government checks and food stamps. Vanessa is divorced. Tom is retired, a widower, and lonely. Not all of these names represent specific people, but each need appears in growing numbers throughout our country and our world. Each of these people hasve special needs. What can churches do for these people?
While going to speak at a church the first person I met was a delightful man, a hearing-impaired person. I introduced myself to him. He smiled and gave his name. Chattering pleasantly as he led me along a church hallway, he took me to the church office and introduced me to a staff member. Later as I stood to teach, I noticed that a husband and wife were signing for this man. The wife had the greater skills, but the husband had begun to master the language of signing to communicate with Bill. During a break as I talked with the husband and the hearing-impaired man, I noticed that the husband signed everything for him as he talked with me. He included his hearing-impaired friend in our dialogue. Little wonder that he felt at home in this church. He was surrounded by the love of a husband and wife who had learned how to communicate with him and to link him with others.
There are all kinds of needs within the church, and God expects the church to make provision to minister to these special people. The church should not pretend to be able to meet needs that they cannot truly meet, but at the same time, churches should never shirk the responsibility to meet the needs that they can be meeting. For too long, our churches have been known as a place for judging those who are suffering consequences for poor decisions, rather than coming along side those who are suffering to help them grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior. There are truly hurting people who need someone to bear their burden… are you willing to be that person?
Christians cannot compete with the financial resources of welfare agencies or government programs. However, we make our unique contribution by seeking to glorify Jesus Christ. We must make our ministries open to reaching the growing needs of every community. We must continue these ministries even if they do not provide statistical church growth. We must find people we can help in the name of Jesus and seek to minister to their needs.
Prayer Requests:
Personal
- Lord, please help me to not be so wrapped up in my own world that I miss the real needs of those around me.
- Lord, please help me to lead Faith to be a church that truly meets the needs of those who simply needs someone to love them.
- Lord, please help me to never be a respecter of people.
Political
- Representative Latanya Garrett – District 7 – Detroit
- Representative Alex Garza – District 12 – Romulus
- Representative Sherry Gay-Dagnogo – District 8 – Detroit