“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’”
Matthew 25:41-45
It was Christmas Eve. I sat down at a small table outside of a coffee shop near our house. I barely wrote out a sentence in my journal before a man approached me. His tattered clothes and dirty skin suggested he was homeless. He was Afrikaans and spoke little English, but after many hand gestures and repeating himself many times, I realized he was saying, “Hungry, hungry. I’m hungry.”
My mind instantly thought of reasons why I should send this man away.
He should know better than to beg.
I’m on the Race, I don’t have any extra money to spend.
These were my thoughts as the man stood in front of my table. “I’m hungry, I’m hungry…”
Then the Lord whispered to me, “Sabrina, see Jesus in him. I am the least of these.”
So what did I do? I invited him to sit down. I gave him a menu, but he couldn’t read English, so I ordered him a chicken pie. We struggled to communicate through the language barrier; we couldn’t get past our names. He gladly received his pie, and ate the whole thing slowly with his hands. Earlier that week my teammate painted me a beautiful purple flower to put in my journal, but again I heard God’s voice, “Sabrina, give me your flower.”
So what did I do? I wrote out “Merry Christmas and God Bless” next to the beautiful flower, and handed it to the man. He took it, smiled, and folded it into his pocket.
After he finished his meal, I ordered him coffee. After watching all the people walk by for a long time, he turned and looked at me. “It’s my birthday tomorrow.”
I smiled and told him happy birthday, thinking of how easy it was for me to understand that sentence. He finished his coffee and stood up to leave. I put my hands together and gestured if I could pray for him. Rather than answering me, he pointed to my (favorite) bracelet on my wrist. “Please, please please.” He kept saying.
And let me tell you, I did not want to give him my bracelet. I stood there and was about ready to shake my head when again I heard the Lord whisper, “Sabrina, give me your bracelet.”
So what did I do? I gave him my little Cambodian bracelet that served only to bring myself glory. (it was very cute!)
The man took my bracelet, said thank you, and walked away.
I sat there for a while before I began to pray for the man. I wondered if he would be lonely on Christmas, AND his birthday. And then it hit me.
It’s his birthday tomorrow. It’s Jesus’ birthday tomorrow!
I remembered God whispering to me when he first approached me. “I am the least of these.” You can imagine both my shock and wonder!
The Lord taught me something that Christmas Eve. He taught me to see Jesus in every single individual. He taught me that he cares deeply for the poor, and that he asks us to take care of them. I used to get frustrated with God over the poverty in this world, but now I realize that there are MANY verses both in the old testament and the new testament that instruct US to help the poor.
Do I actually believe I had coffee with Jesus? I really don’t know. But I do know that I will no longer hold back my time and resources from “the least of these,” because that is where I’ll find Jesus.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
Matthew 25:34-40
Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas!
Sabrina
