Orphan, homeless, sick, Prisoner; we hear it all the time. It’s everywhere, in the news, in our churches, in our streets, in our own homes. There is a desperate need out there, a need for something more than pouring out of money, food, and items. There needs to be sustainability. But what can sustain us? Better said, who can take this mess and turn it into a message of hope and love?

Come to me all who are weary

This past Monday, Pastor Virginia preached on Matthew 11:28. It’s simple. Jesus extends an invitation to us. He says (paraphrased) “Come to Me, I will give you rest, I will relieve your pain. I will carry your burden and I will give you peace.”  As she continued with the message, my eyes scanned the people standing in front of us: the homeless of Downtown Miami.

Let’s pause for a sec.

Let me repeat that. In this very moment Jesus is speaking through His word. Here are a broken people listening to these words. Jesus is telling them: “I’m Jesus. I came to this world and gave my life for YOU. I did it because I love you and even if I knew that you would be standing here this very moment, still sinning and lost, I did it anyways! I rose up and broke the chains of death over your life. Now you have a chance of real life. You are accepted. Life will be tough at times, but I am here to give you rest. You can come to me and I will be your comfort.”

That's an amazing word. I remember when I first realized this truth. I thank God because He used someone to guide me to Him. This same way we need to guide others to the truth.

So let’s be honest. Is “homeless” (or orphan, sick, needy) just another word that we've become anesthetized to? Did we forget that behind the label there’s this person that Jesus thought of? I always feel that as followers of Jesus, we have the biggest gift and we need to just share it with the entire world. We have encountered real Love. We have welcomed life, hope, and beauty. Were far from perfect, but when we encounter tough times, we know Jesus is there. Jesus is the Rock of Life.

Where are we through the suffering?

The Lord has called us all to live an abundant life. He desires that we are happy and fulfilled and enjoy the beauty of our lives as he originally created it to be. This is important. But there’s this BIG THING we can’t forget: We’re not yet at the finish line. The reality is that right now, today, we are living in a flawed and dying world and we need to help others get on that same path of salvation.

In John 13:15 it states: “What I've done, You do.”  At the end of this life, I don’t only want to remember all the great times and all the great Sunday services… I want to know that I went out there and I shared the Good news with every person I encountered: not only my coworkers or the new person at church, but also the homeless, the orphans, the prisoners, the sick...

It's the people that I have to go out of my way to reach. Just like Jesus went out of his way to reach our hearts.