"Looking for Jesus"

I was looking hard for Jesus,

But a cowboy came instead,

His clothes and hat were dusty,

Eyes tired and turned blood red.

He asked for food and water,

And a place to rest his horse,

Wasn’t sure about this saddle bum,

But I welcomed him of course.

I was praying for an answer,

When a wagon came in view,

There were kids and one old grandma,

They were no one that I knew.

But she said they’d had a fire,

Took all I heard her say,

And wondered could they bed down,

In the barn on our old hay.

I said send those kids out there,

But you need to come on in,

We’ll make sure they’re fed and warm,

You can rest from where you’ve been.

I rode to town for errands,

Just to get a few supplies,

Got stopped by our old sheriff,

And much to my surprise,

He told me that young Ellis kid,

That worked for me last spring,

Had gone and stole a pony,

It just beat everything.

I really was so busy,

And needed to get back,

But though I’d better visit,

That kid who got off track.

And after all that visit,

Which went well I suppose,

Who should I run into,

By our old Dr. Rose,

Who asked me if I’d help him,

There’s a fellow in a well,

They think his leg is broken,

The best that they could tell.

So as the shadows lengthened,

Old Doctor Rose and me,

Went out to help this feller,

And all that we could see,

Was lots of cryin’ children,

And a mother and a mule,

They were runnin’ everywhere,

She was cryin’ this is cruel.

We got the feller lifted,

And got his old leg set,

And it was really late that night,

Before to bed I’d get.

Knelt down by my bedside,

And tried to pray once more,

About the burdens on my heart,

And what they were there for.

I asked the Lord to help me,

I asked for closeness, see,

But He said that He’d been near,

As close as close could be.

I said, Lord, I didn’t see You,

He said, oh yes you did.

When you helped that old cowboy,

That was Me, just hid.

And also with the Grandma,

And all those kids, you see,

When you gave a place for them,

You made a place for Me.

And on that jailhouse visit,

And way down in the well,

Both times I was in trouble,

And you treated Me well.

You see, son, when you do it,

For those the lease of these,

You’ve done it for the Lord your God,

You’ve ministered to Me.

I said, O Lord, forgive me,

Then thought of all those times,

I didn’t help someone in need,

I’m guilty of those crimes.

Lord, from now on I’ll see You,

But not just in my prayer,

But also when somebody,

Needs to know I care.

“…when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to Me!” (Mt. 25:40, NLT)

Jesus was clear about what it meant to serve Him. He linked it directly to what we do to serve others, especially those who need help the most. He called them the “least of these.” The love we show to others shows that we love Jesus. If we have true, saving faith it will show by what we do. We don’t earn salvation, but receive it by faith. But if our faith is real, it will manifest itself in ministry to the least of these. If we do it for them, we do it for Jesus. That’s it. Amen.

Lord, help us learn to love the least of these, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mikel Donahue, mikeldonahue.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Mikel, and God bless you.