Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” —James 2:18
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the boy, he asked, “What are you doing?” The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them back, they’ll die.” “Son,” the man said, “don’t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can’t make a difference!”
After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said…” I made a difference for that one.” Original Story by: Loren Eisley
What We Do Matters
My son Alec is 12 years old; He loves animals. If it swims, he loves it. If it flies, he loves it. If it crawls, slithers, barks, or meows… he loves it. All of the animals we have or have ever had, are because of him—and we have had a lot of critters that crawl, swim, and slither—and still do. Alec even takes his chickens for a walk.
The swallows are back building their mud nests under the eaves of our back patio and over our front door. Swallows are messy. It seems as if the second they finish their nests with that last speck of mud, there are babies waiting to hatch. I believe Alec has saved more birds than any other boy in Lincoln, and has contributed greatly to the increase in swallow population in the entire state of Nebraska! Which means once there’s an egg, there is no destroying the nest despite the mess.
Baby birds often fall out of their nest. My son is always on the scene for the rescue; He’s always in the right place at the right time. It’s uncanny—I believe it’s God’s timing. We have several boxes set aside just for such events. We also have a cupboard filled with all size glass jars to house unfortunate bugs and insects.
When we lived on a ranch in California, we constantly fought a battle with mice. They were so cute, but they also are dirty, invasive, and hard to get rid of. When we first moved to the property, we were so inundated it was almost like a scary movie from the 70’s. Thank goodness Alec was just a baby and we could bring in an exterminator without his protests.
In our new home we rarely see signs of mice. Recently, however, a few of them have become fond of our garage. My husband brought home some handy dandy mouse traps to bring the problem under control before it spun out of control. Alec had not been aware of this. When he found a mouse trap in the garage he nearly lost his mind. There is no way on God’s green earth that we are going to kill a sweet mouse.
This is the same boy who rescued a little mouse in the local park one snowy day last winter while sledding with friends. It was his last run down the hill for the day when he saw a helpless little creature in his periphery. He instinctually jumped between the mouse and another sledder to save it. Mission accomplished—we had a new pet mouse. There are no lengths to which Alec will not go to save a mouse or any creature in peril.
Be Like Christ “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” —1 Corinthians 11:1
Alec has a compassionate heart; like that of the boy in the “starfish story,” his actions are a standard call as an imitator of Christ. He knows that each life you touch matters, even if it is only one—no matter how small or futile your actions may appear, actions matter.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.” —Matthew 18:10-14
God is a Father. The parable of the Lost Sheep illustrates for us that each life matters to Him. He counts all of His children equally important. He rejoices that some are safely in Christ, prepared for eternity and nestled near His heart, but some are in peril. The Father sent Jesus on a rescue mission “to seek and to save” (Luke 19:10) God does not abandon the ninety-nine—they are already safe—when He rescues us one by one.
Most importantly, we must be doers of the Word, not just hearers. James reminds us that hearers often forget, but a doer who acts will be blessed in his doing (James 1:22-25). So is James telling us we must do good works? Absolutely, but not to merit grace—grace is a gift of faith that cannot be earned—we do it because it is God’s will.
“Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” —James 2:18
A living faith brings forth good works. It is God who works in you.
“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” —1 Corinthians 15:58
Because we are made righteousness through Jesus alone, He is our only hope. He delivers us from death. He saves us—like the boy on the beach, He rescues us one at a time—because we matter to Him. His labor is not in vain and neither is ours when we are imitators of Christ.
