“You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:9)
Our household should be a city of refuge for the poor and a Christian center for the needy. Our children need to see us live as Christians. Even our difficulties, hardships and disappointment should reflect our faith, allegiance and a heart-knowledge of God and His Word so that others will take note and love Him more.
Sacrificial Service to Widows
Yolanda Powell conveys this story about how her family lived out this calling:
“When the boys were young, we lived on a cul-de-sac. Most of our neighbors knew each other but were not close. The oldest member of the community was an elderly widow who had huge feet resulting from a rare disease. She often was unable to move about without great distress.
“William, the boys and I visited her frequently for prayer and encouragement or just to find out if she needed anything. From time to time, we would do her grocery shopping and make sure that her medicines were taken properly. Even though she had a son nearby and other neighbors had lived there longer, we felt it was our Christian duty to serve this needy widow.
“At first, the boys were somewhat afraid of her, until we shared with them the important work we were doing. ‘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 from being polluted by the world’ (James 1:27).
“The boys soon became eager to deliver small packages and perform small chores on her behalf. In this way, our whole family was blessing the Lord our God and announcing our faith to the whole community.”
