But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. Acts 3:6 (NLT)
As Peter and John went about their day, they came across a lame man. The man was calling out asking for money. When Peter and John stopped, the Bible says he looked up at them expectantly, hoping to get the same thing he always got.
Peter said to him, I don’t have any money but I do have something else to give you.
Lately, I’ve been praying for guidance during the shutdown of the US Government. There are so many people being hurt by this situation. Government workers, contractors (if the government is not working neither are they and they are also not getting paid) and business owners who rely on the government staff to generate business so they too can pay their bills.
I own a business that is impacted by this shutdown. In my humanness I want to hunker down and pull everything in so we are impacted as little as possible. But that is not what I feel God is saying to do. As I was praying about how to help folks who are going through this situation, I was talking to God about the financial implications of something he put on my heart. I was explaining to him that it didn’t make fiscal sense.
Two texts flashed into my mind.
One text was Acts 3:6. I might not have silver or gold (or paper money for that matter) but I do have Jesus and a peace in knowing that if I follow God’s directive, it will work out for his glory.
The second text was Matthew 25:40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!” If I reach out to help people, I am helping Jesus. If Jesus were standing there, would I say, “Well Lord, you are asking alot. It is not logical.” NO! I would not. So why would I not respond to others in the same way when he makes it clear that if I help people, I am helping him?
I am not sure what the future holds in this situation (and you better believe I am praying about it) but I do know this. The most valuable thing I have is my relationship with Jesus. How do you weigh the cost of sharing that with folks? Even if it does cost all of my silver and gold, wouldn’t it be worth it if they saw just a tiny glimpse of him?