Ave Explores Series | Faith in Action | Week 1

Your Challenge: Pay Attention

by Mary Pezzulo

The first thing you have to do is pay attention. That's harder than it seems.           

We've been trained our whole lives not to notice people in need. Don’t look at that homeless person so they won’t talk to you. Don’t stare at the lady crying in the back of church or getting her card declined at the checkout. Pretend you don’t see the person who’s been a victim of bullying in your community. Don’t talk to “those people.” Mind your own business.

The Lord says differently: “These people are your business because you are a Christian and they are Christ in disguise.”

We have a responsibility to pay attention to the people around us so that we can treat them as we would want to be treated in their shoes. That's one of the ways we serve Christ: by noticing him and then doing everything we can to love him and to help.

If you walked into a crowded room and were told that Jesus was there wearing a disguise among the people, how carefully would you look for him? That’s how carefully you should look for opportunities to help others. Because for the Christian, the other person is always Jesus.

When you’re actively looking for ways to show mercy to Christ, then it’s easier to see what to do—how to feed him, clothe him, and welcome him. When you see Christ in your neighbor, you can ask yourself how to respond, how you’d want to be treated if you were in their shoes. But you’ll never get anywhere if you don’t look for Christ.

The first step to living a life of mercy is to notice.

Pay attention! Christ is right here with you, but you have to look for him.

Mary Pezzulo is a columnist for Patheos and the author of Stumbling into Grace.