Daily Devotional

I started a small group ministry at my church in Wisconsin. They met in homes every week. The goal for these groups was to give people an opportunity to connect with others from our church on a deeper level. Besides prayer and Bible study, one of the things we emphasized in our groups was care. If someone missed a small group, we would reach out to them to see if they were okay and ask how we could pray for them. If someone needed help with a home project, or with a move, we’d be the first to volunteer. And if someone went into the hospital, we would arrange for meals, visit them in the hospital, and while we were there, read Scripture and pray.

When I added hospital visitation to our list of small group duties, I did not know if it would work. When people from the church went into the hospital, they expected the pastor to visit; because no one prays like the pastor prays, no one reads Scripture like the pastor reads Scripture, and if you have got the pastor praying for you, you do not need anyone else. But, as good as that sounds, it is just not true. In the body of Christ, we are all responsible for care.

Hebrews 6:10 says, “For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints.”

While we did receive some push-back when we started asking small groups to handle hospital visitation, overall it was going very well. And I should say, as the pastor, when someone went to the emergency room, or when someone was dying, I would certainly go visit them.

A new Christian couple came to our church from India named Ashish and Nisha. After their first Sunday, they joined a small group. Ashish spoke fluent English, but Nisha really struggled. Plus they did not know much about our culture, and what safety precautions needed to be taken.
Well, they needed a car, so they went online and put in the subject line “Used cars in Wisconsin”. A bunch of potential cars came up. One was in the Milwaukee area, about 90 miles away. It was a five-year old Honda Accord with low miles. And the price was way below the blue book. Well, most of us know that in our culture, when it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Ashish called the number on the ad, and the man on the other end confirmed that they indeed had a Honda Accord, and it really was that price. When Ashish asked why the price was so low, the man said, “My wife and I need money immediately, so we need to sell it quickly, and we will only take cash.” Most of us hear that and see ‘red flags’; but not this newly arrived man from India. He wanted to see the car before he bought it, so he asked when and where he could meet this guy. He gave Ashish a time after dark, and had him drive to a street with very little light in a bad part of town. When Ashish arrived, he saw the car parked along the street, and as he pulled up, a man got out of the car. Ashish rolled down his window, and immediately the man pulled a gun on him and asked him to give him his money. Ashish had never taken his car out of drive, so rather than give him the money, he decided to hit the gas. Unfortunately, before Ashish could get away, the man got a shot off and hit him in the shoulder.

By the time I got the call, Ashish was already in the emergency room. He was stable, but it was going to be a long and painful recovery. As soon as I hung up the phone I started making plans to drive to the hospital in Milwaukee to visit Ashish and see what I could do to help. I was just about to leave when I got a call from Ashish’s small group leader, David. David said to me, “Pastor Brian, did you hear about Ashish?” I said, “Yep, I'm just getting ready to go visit him.” David said, “Why don't you hold off on that. My wife and I, and another couple from our group are already on our way to Milwaukee.” I said, “But this is an emergency, one of our church attenders got shot.” He said, “Pastor, we’ve got this. If we need you, we’ll let you know.” They never called back.

Ashish was released from the hospital the next day. His small group made meals for him and Nisha. They checked on him regularly to make sure he was okay. And after about two weeks, Ashish was back in church and attending his small group.

What I learned from this is, the people in our small groups know their fellow small group members better than they know me. Many times I would go visit someone and the first thing I would have to do is introduce myself. But for small group members to visit their group members who get sick, they are already in community, so they already know each other, and they already care deeply for one another. Who better to visit?

Are you in community? If you are not, then you are not being cared for by the body of Christ. And you are missing out on the blessing of caring for others. There is nothing like the care of community in the Body of Christ. Join one today.

New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation