I Was Cold And You Gave Me A Hot Cocoa


When my wife and I loaded up the U-Haul truck we were broke. Off we drove with our LTD station wagon in tow and a car seat between us for baby Nathaniel. 

We also had a turkey.

I had just finished Bible School, and we were moving to NJ to join the staff of a church. Right before I left Pete Foster gave me a call. He was the Food Services Director at the school, and at the end of the semester he had a leftover turkey. He offered, I accepted, and off I drove with my wife, baby son, and a frozen bird.
We unloaded the U-Haul and my life savings totaled $26.00. Off to the grocery store I went.
We settled into our new residence with $26.00 worth of groceries and a turkey. Sarai worked her magic, the bird came out delicious, and we ate turkey. We ate it again the next day. We ate it again the day after. We ate it again...well, you get the idea.

Just about the time we ran out of turkey there was a knock on our door. I went to find several women from the church standing there all smiles. They had come to greet and welcome us to the community. One of them was holding a large basket that contained various canned goods and foods all surrounding something in the middle. We had ourselves another turkey.
I will never fault the children of Israel for complaining about the manna, because there was that one time in my life when I ate turkey for a month.

"I was hungry, and you fed me." Matthew 25:35

When we stand before Jesus he's going to say things like that to us. He's going to recall times when we blessed others, and in doing so blessed him.

When Pete Foster stands before Jesus he will hear, "I was hungry, and you gave me a turkey."

So will the ladies from Bridgewater, NJ. (The folks from that church blessed us abundantly in the years that followed).

Each of us has opportunity to bless others on a recurring basis. Unique opportunities to use what we have to demonstrate the love of Christ. Keep your eyes open. Most of us will head to church trying to find Jesus through worship, or at the altar. That's totally fitting, but don't miss him if he's sitting in one of the pews.

When Hurricane Sandy hit NY the lines to buy gas in the days that followed stretched for blocks. Many were without power for a couple weeks. I remember watching Yomaira, James, and Melissa walk up to car windows to give drivers cups of hot cocoa who were waiting for hours. The faces of those receiving this simple gesture was priceless. I won't be surprised if when they cross over into eternity they hear, "I was cold. I was hungry. I was frustrated. And you gave me a hot chocolate and a snack."

What will you hear? What will I hear? Let's all go creatively bless someone. In so doing, we'll bless Jesus.

Following the Son,
James A Williams

(The pictures in today's blog are of my niece, Lymarie, and I serving lunch with Vision Rescue to children from the slums in Kolkata, India. Sarai is behind the camera. The lower picture is my friend, Stan Handzlik, serving lunch to children in Haiti with Convoy of Hope. Both Vision Rescue and Convoy of Hope are awesome ministries that are worthy of your support.)

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