I was driving the other day and saw a man holding a sign asking for food. I wasn’t in a hurry so I pulled over and talked to him for a while. He was struggling with finding a permanent place to live and needed something to eat. I shared with him different places here in town that could help him; but mostly I was encouraged to know, in his heart he was a believer and had put his faith in Jesus.
Jesus said “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Often we may look at the homeless or the poor and think they are the only ones who need help. What Jesus is saying here is we all need to eat and drink from his table. Everyone needs this eternal hope he is serving.
Feeding the hungry is a great service, but the fact is many people who walk around our community have plenty to eat and drink and yet they have never tasted this “bread of life.” They don’t look hungry or needy, but what they lack is much more desperate than that of the man I mentioned above. He has the hope that understands through Jesus he will always have what he needs and in even the worst of times God is with him.
Sometimes the “hungriest” or “needy” may seem to have all they require from their outside appearance and yet on the inside their heart may be shattered into pieces. We can’t always tell who needs help so we must remember to be there for anyone God may send our way. Whether they are standing on the street corner hiding behind a cardboard sign or sitting in a boardroom hiding behind the façade of a successful career and a lot of worldly possessions, everyone needs the hope of Jesus and you may be the only one in their life capable of sharing this hope.
Lt. Mark Cyr is pastor of The Salvation Army, 661 Colorado St. For information go to carsoncitysalarmy.org.
