Doing God's Work
- Don Roe
- Jan 11, 2009
Sermon Title: “Doing God’s Work”
Text: II Corinthians 8: 1-15
Howard Thurman in his book “The Moods of Christmas”, shares these beautiful thoughts about a desert dweller: “He has lived in the desert so long that all of its moods have long since become a part of the daily rhythm of his life. But it is nor that fact that is of crucial importance. For many years it has been his custom to leave a lighted lantern by the roadside at night to cheer the weary traveler. Beside the lantern there is a note which gives detailed directions as to where his cottage may be found so that if there is distress or need, the stranger may find help. It is a very simple gesture full of beauty and wholeness. To him it is not important who the stranger may be, it is not important how many people pass in the night and go on their way. The important thing is that the lantern burns every night and every night the note is there, ‘just in case’. ”
In a similar mood, Howard Thurman reflects upon an experience in his own life: “Years ago, walking along a road outside Rangoon, I noted at intervals along the way a roadside stone with a crock of water and, occasionally, some fruit. Water and fruit were put there by Buddhist priests to comfort and bless any passerby – one’s spiritual salvation to another. The fact that I was a traveler from another part of the world, speaking a strange language and practicing a different faith, made no difference. What mattered was the fact that I was walking along the road – what my mission was,
who I was – all irrelevant.”
The beauty of these experiences generated by the desert dweller and the Buddhist priest inspired Howard Thurman to direct these very personal questions toward each of us: “In your own way, do you keep a lantern burning by the roadside with a note saying where you may be found, ‘just in case’? Do you place a jar of cool water and a bit of fruit under a tree at the road’s turning, to help the needy traveler? God knows the answer and so do you!”
These simple thoughts and questions from the pen of Howard Thurman remind us that simple, subtle, sincere moments of sharing glorify life. Compassionate caring and sacrificial sharing always generates beautiful moments in human experience.
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