If you were asked how you could bring a big smile to your pastor’s face, some possible responses might be cooking his favorite dish, sending him to a nice resort (A few days at Epworth By the Sea would sure bring a super-sized grin to my face!), or giving him a pay increase. Any of those ideas would probably do the job and would surely be much appreciated. But

ask you to consider a way to bring a huge smile to his or her face that takes much less cost and effort than you might think.

I had such a joyful and encouraging experience last week that had nothing to do with food, entertainment or income; it was more eternally valuable than any of those things.

As I walked down the hall at one of the Dothan hospitals, I saw a couple of ladies in the distance who looked familiar and as I got closer I realized that they were members of the church

pastor in Donalsonville. I did not expect them to be there, and I became concerned that something had happened within our church family that I had not been made aware of. But it was nothing of that sort. After talking with them for a few minutes, I learned that they had checked on two of the people that I was there to see—neither of whom are members of our church.

What a joy it was to see them giving of their time to be an encouragement to others! They were, in fact, doing what God’s people should do—reaching out to others with the love of Christ.

After having just remembered the suffering and death of Christ and having celebrated the glory of His resurrection, we need to make it our goal every day to let others see His presence at work in our lives. One way that we can do that is to reach out to others in their time of sorrow and suffering.

Christ has called us to exercise a faith that has hands and feet; He has called us to exhibit faith that is alive and active. We are told in James 1:27 that “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” (NIV). And in the next chapter, James gives an illustration regarding the connection between faith and deeds: “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?” (Verses 15-16).

Whether we are pastor or parishioner, there are plenty of opportunities all around for each of us to put our faith into action by reaching out to others in their time of need. As we do so, we can be encouraged by the words of Christ as He said, “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward” (Matthew 10:42).

I was pleased to see those two ladies visiting in the hospital, but of far greater importance, God was pleased with them because they were doing what God’s people ought to be doing.