I recently had an adventure with my father-in-law.  His driver’s license was near its expiration and he needed to get it renewed.  By the way, my father-in-law is 91 years old.  He does not drive anymore partly because he can’t escape their residence without one of us.  Still the state renewed his license.  I wonder why it is that we feel powerless to say “no.”  The state did not tell him “no.”  His daughters did not tell him “no” either (as if any of them could anyway.)  Sometimes we feel powerless to say “no” to others.  We may even feel that way about ourselves.  But “no” isn’t the only answer we can give to circumstances.  There are some circumstances we should say “yes” to but maybe we don’t.

I think about Mary and her surprise visit with one of God’s angels.  I can imagine that she was shocked first by the angel’s presence and second by the announcement.  Mary, a young virgin, had found favor with God and she would become the bearer of God’s son.  She is told how this would happen and even what name she would give the boy.  I can also imagine some of the objections Mary might have felt or thought, but didn’t say.  “Excuse me . . . how can this be?”  “Are you sure?  I’m a virgin!” or “How, since I am a virgin?”  She could have made excuses for why she should say “no” to God’s emissary.  But she didn’t.  Maybe instead, she reflected upon the history of her people and how God had opened the womb of women who longed for a child.  Sarai, Rachel, Hannah, and even her cousin, Elizabeth.  All things were possible with God, even pregnancy by the Holy Spirit.  And so Mary had a different reply “Here I am, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  Actually, if I were to boil this down to a six-word memoir for her, I think her summation would be “All I could say was ‘yes!’”

As a community of faith, we say “yes” to a lot of opportunities to serve.  We are invested in two distinct and powerful ministries for people who are marginalized.  There are dedicated people who diligently serve these missional ministries, but it seems to be consistently the same people.  One area of growth for us as a church is inviting others to join us and to expand the depth of involvement across a larger swath of the church.  It is part of every disciple’s journey, serving others. 

Jesus has some powerful words of command and warning in the gospels.  On one occasion he tells his disciples that they are the ones to feed the hungry crowd.  On another occasion he told them that the ones welcomed into God’s kingdom will be the ones who served Jesus.  They did this when they fed, clothed, gave drink to, visited when sick and in prison, the least of Jesus’ brothers and sisters.  In other words, our welcome into the kingdom is tied to how we serve Jesus by serving those who are distressed and in need today.  As we listen more intently to God’s call maybe we will realize like Mary that “all we could say was ‘yes!’”

I invite you to take time and read each of the scriptures above followed by reflection on the questions below.  Discern how God is calling you and how you can say “yes.”  Lastly, I pray that God bless the reading of God’s Word and the meditations of your heart.

Questions to Consider this week:

• Monday:  Who was the last stranger you helped?
• Tuesday:  What did you do for the stranger who was in need?
• Wednesday: How did helping the stranger make you feel?
• Thursday:  How is God calling you to serve on a routine basis?
• Friday:  Who is God calling you to serve next? 
• Saturday:  Do you know how St. John’s is serving the least and lost of Kansas City?  If not, will you go on a journey to find out?

Actions for the Week:

• Head:  Consider your understanding of what it means to say “yes” to God.
• Heart:  Search your heart and soul to see if God is tugging and nudging you to deeper and more meaningful service.
• Hand:  Find a particular ministry or project that aligns with serving the least in our community and volunteer to help this week.