Committing Acts Of Selfless Sacrifice

A few years ago, as my late wife and I were walking to our car after finishing a hearty meal at one of our local restaurants, a man approached us asking for money. He told us that he was a Vietnam veteran and that he and his family needed gas to successfully reach the home of their relatives who lived in Arizona. As he and I were conversing, I noticed the sincere look of need and necessity in his eyes, gave him some money, and told him we would pray for him and his family.

One of my favorite stories in the New Testament is about the little boy who brown-bagged it to a mountain retreat (John 6:1-14). If he was like most boys, his lunch was a very important commodity. Yet he was willing to give his lunch of five barley loaves and two small fish to the Lord. I’ve always had the thought that this little boy may have known that by putting his lunch in the hands of Jesus, He could do something extraordinary with it. And He did by feeding a few thousand hungry people (John 6:10).

Beloved, Jesus is still looking for a few common folk like you and me who are willing to commit out-of-the-ordinary, intentional acts of selfless sacrifice so that He can turn our offering into His glory. Let’s commit such an act today by allowing Jesus to share with others what we sometimes want to keep for ourselves (Matthew 10:40-42; Matthew 25:34-40; cf. Acts 2:44-45; Acts 4:32-35; 2 Corinthians 8:1-15; Gal. 6:10; 1 John 3:17-18).

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets