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Whether It's a Cake or a Casserole

 



My mother-in-law had the most significant servant's heart I have ever seen. With remarkable grace and kindness, she was always busy doing something that would bless someone else. I often stopped by her house and found her baking a cake or cooking a casserole for someone in need. These generous actions she kept very quiet, yet they had a profound impact on those she served. If she wasn't cooking for others, she was most likely donning a pink hospital auxiliary jacket she'd paid dues to wear so she could volunteer to help others in the hospital, but she never counted the cost. She had a servant's heart through and through, serving others daily and meeting the seemingly ordinary needs of so many.  

In Acts Chapter 8, Jesus travels from town to town, sharing the good news many had been waiting to hear: the coming of the Kingdom of God. Teaching both His disciples and the large crowds that followed Him must have been physically exhausting. Yet, Jesus, by His very words, did remarkable things by calming an angry sea, restoring a man possessed with evil spirits, and raising a dead girl to life—all by His visible command. All of which were probably front-page newsworthy for the day. Yet there were times that Jesus served others with no big fanfare, no headline news on the scrolls of the day, no "Mr. Fix-It "bag filled with potions and promises in tow, but rather, simply by His gentle words quietly spoken, such as when he healed a woman just by her touch of the hem of His garment or by His words to the woman at the well who was in quite a moral mess in the town. Yes, sometimes, He served others by his calm and compassionate words, yet He met their most dire needs.


Dear friend, what does this mean for you and for me? Is it a reminder of the power so often underestimated that can flow from a voice and spirit that desires to serve Christ? Though our service may look different based on the gifts we have been given, we must extinguish one of the enemy's best tools to keep us from doing so when he sends the negative thought that I really don't have anything outstanding enough to offer, to cross our minds. Really? Nothing? Let's refute such thoughts and keep things in perspective. Helping others at times may be a grand gesture, and at other times a quiet act that no one ever even knows about. Both are equal in value if they are done with the spirit of serving others for the glory of Christ.


Whether it's a cake or casserole, a smile, a compliment, a listening ear, or even an extravagant gift, all provide a chance to tell the story of God's love for us. Regardless of how we are equipped to serve, it can be a ministry to others and a testimony of our devotion and desire to serve Jesus, our Savior, forever.


"For I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me a 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 tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."

Matthew 25:35-40 NIV


             Ordinary measures often yield extraordinary results. 

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