Mother Teresa served the “poorest of the poor” in Calcutta, India. Apparently every morning, her ministry would send ambulances to the train station to pick up the dying that had been abandoned there over night.

“One night they found a man in terrible condition. Rats were gnawing on him. Maggots had eaten his flesh down to the bone. He had only hours to live. Mother Teresa cared for him herself. She did all she could to comfort him and sat by him all morning in prayer. At the end, he briefly opened his eyes and said, ‘Thank you,’ and died.

Later that day she said with a smile, ‘I had the privilege this morning of caring for the dying Christ.” (Taken from a speech Skye Jethani’s gave in Washington DC on April 26, 2013)

Mother Teresa’s reference to taking care of the dying Christ is a reflection of the passage in Mathew 25 where Jesus equates caring for the hungry, a stranger, the sick and the lonely with caring for Him. “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

I think the principle behind this expressed teaching is that you and I are to have eyes that see, REALLY see the world around us.

Instead of just glancing at a beggar, we are enjoined to see the face of Christ imprinted across that guy’s face who is asking for some money. Instead of ignoring the silent cries of the homeless in our communities, we are expected to open our eyes and minister to them.

Brandon Heath has recorded a song entitled, “Give me Your Eyes.” In part, this song says:

“Looked down from a broken sky, traced out by the city lights, my world from a mile high, best seat in the house tonight. Touched down on the cold black top, hold on for the sudden stop; breathe in the familiar shock of confusion and chaos.

All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared? Give me your eyes for just one second; give me your eyes so I can see everything that I keep missing. Give me your love for humanity.”

This week might be a great time to pray that prayer. “Lord, give me YOUR eyes. Let me see what you see. Give me the capacity and desire to respond in love to the needs all around me.”

I did some checking…there are 28,000 homeless kids in the county I live in. I need to go find a few and let them know that in Jesus’ name, someone cares. “Give me your eyes, Lord.”

By His Grace and for His Glory,
Sherry L. Worel