A Lesson About Helping Others
by Cheryl Hollar
(Franklinton, NC, USA)
Webster’s defines “service” as “contribution to the welfare of others”…”a helpful act.” When Jesus was on earth, He spent His time helping and serving others. As His children, we are to do likewise. John 13:35 says, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
So, the Bible says we are to minister to others, right? It says in Matthew 23:11 that we should serve others – “But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.” I thought I was doing just that – being an obedient servant – when I began doing odd jobs around the house for Josephine, the mother of a friend of mine.
It seemed simple enough. Nothing to it, right? And my duties were simple. If there were dishes to wash, I washed them. If the bed needed to be made, I made it. If there were clothes that needed washing, I washed them. But I didn’t count on the company….. The company with Josephine was great – fulfilling, even peaceful. We’d sit on the porch while we shared ice cream (which she loved), or we’d sit in the kitchen at the table and eat her favorite cookies. And we talked.
I found her to be easy to talk with, this hard woman with the rough exterior and a reputation for being an ornery, constant complainer. (She and my uncle would even fight over dominoes at the Senior Center). I felt like I could talk to her about anything. To my surprise – and quite quickly - I didn’t see that rough exterior anymore.
I saw a lonely woman who loved me, who enjoyed my company. I truly felt like I was unwrapping a gift - a wonderful surprise – a woman who always greeted me at the door, walker in tow, with a smile on her face. A smile!? Was this really Josephine?
As circumstances would have it, I only worked for Josephine for about two or three months. What everyone thought was a temporary sickness ended with her leaving this world. But she kept on smiling til the end. And her son noticed her rough exterior begin to melt. She no longer complained but accepted what God had to offer. And she was thankful! She thanked God aloud continuously – for her friends, for her life, for her Lord.
You never know what’s going to happen or what God has planned – and that’s part of His wonderful surprise!
I believe God let me see another side of Josephine and get close to her so that I could learn what service to others really is. I thought I was doing a good thing helping her in her home, but it was she who was ministering in service to me.
I learned to take the time and “enjoy the cookies and ice cream.” I’ll cherish our time together – however brief it may have been. And I will never forget that woman’s smile as she came around the corner to greet me every day.
