A few years ago, my church body adopted a new Easter tradition. Our pastor's wife was broken for the lives of orphans and worked with the non-profit Feeding the Orphans to bring the Forget the Frock movement to our church body. The first year that our church participated, I was skeptical. Being raised in a small-town southern baptist church, it was unfathomable that you would wear a t-shirt to church on Easter Sunday. To me, Easter had always been as much about pomp and circumstance almost as much as it had been about the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ (wow, this is a very convicting realization!). I had been raised wearing beautiful Easter dresses to church and could not imagine not perusing the racks of my local JC-Penney to find the perfect dress for Easter Sunday. I will admit, I did not participate the first Easter that some of our congregation chose to purchase t-shirts to help orphans be given a full belly of food and the opportunity to learn about the love of God through individuals loving and taking care of them. I was prideful and ultimately, I did not understand. I didn't realize how the simple purpose of feeding children could translate into a authentic representation of God's love. But my eyes were opened and now I see!
The next year, the founders of Feeding the Orphans led a discussion at our church. The spearhead of this organization, a young girl with a big heart for God and others, by the name of Sydney O'Leary rocked my world that Sunday. The pictures and stories shared in that discussion, broke my heart of my pride and showed me that loving others through practical and life-changing acts of love in God's name, is what I as a Christian am supposed to be seeking to do every minute of my life. To me, it became much more than just buying a t-shirt. That t-shirt was an avenue through which children could have a better life here on Earth and in eternity. As Christians, we are commanded to care for the disadvantaged, the fatherless and those in need. Religion that does not strive to fulfill this commandment is dead and useless in the eyes of God. In fact, in James 1:27, it is written, "Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself form being polluted by the world." You see, I was operating from a polluted ideal about my mission as a Christian. I had been polluted by pride, tradition and the unwillingness to look beyond my personal views and into the actuality of what I am commanded to do as a follower of God. The Sunday that the O'Leary family visited my church was the turning point in my realization that I have to do more than just feel "sorry" for the orphaned, widowed and disadvantaged. Feeling sorry for others doesn't spread the message of God; only action does that. For me after that Sunday, Easter and every day has become more than just pomp and circumstance, tradition and selfishness. My heart has been broken and I have been revived with the purpose of loving others because God first loved me.
I provided the link above for the Feeding the Orphans organization's website. I hope that you will click on the link and learn more about their mission, purpose and projects. This is an organization that I have grown to love and I am so excited for how they are actively building the kingdom of God. I am excited for next Sunday (i.e. Easter Sunday). As I am beginning to prepare my heart for reflection of God's love and the greatest gift ever given to us, salvation of sin and rebirth through Christ, I am excited to see the movement of Feeding the Orphans throughout our little world. Sunday, I will wear my shirt as I have the past couple of years, not out of pride or obligation but with purpose. I can't wait to see what big and mighty things God accomplishes this Easter through individuals that are actively choosing to throw tradition to the wind and choosing to care for and love others in a practical way that has the potential to be life-changing for the many orphans who are often neglected of love in our world. I am thankful for individuals like Sydney and her family. She was birthed with a big purpose and I am so excited to hear how God is moving in her life and in her work.
My challenge to you this week is to discover the ways in which you can love others as God has loved you. Whether that be by purchasing a shirt to feed a hungry child or some other avenue, chose to be all in to sharing the love that you are capable and gifted to share with the world. My prayer for you, if you are a follower of God, is that you would make the choice today to love others because God first loved you. My prayer for you, if you are not a follower of God, is that you would surrender to the power of God's grace and salvation and that today you would make the choice to start a new life as a child of the king of kings. There is no one or anything greater than God. He is the light out of darkness that will help you to start fresh with a new life made possible by rebirth from your old life. No one in this world can love you and care for you as much as God does. No matter where you are in your life, there is power in the name of Jesus. He can break every chain that binds you and only he holds the power to make you a new creation. I challenge you to let this Easter be different from all the others of your past. Choose to love and care for others not just at Easter but every day. If you are a Christian, open your heart to your purpose of being the hands and feet of God through love and compassion. If you are not a Christian, I pray that you will open your heart to accepting God's love and the unending grace that he provides. We were made to do more than just coast through life. We were created to be world changers and to leave the world a better place. Choose to live with purpose and love because that is what make the world go around!!
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