Loving People Like Jesus

Why Your Ordinary Moments Matter More Than You Think

The thought has crossed your mind: Does what I do actually count? It’s true—the need in the world is enormous, and your reach can feel limited. Someone else builds wells overseas. Another person writes the big check. And you make dinner for the family next door or sit with a neighbor who’s had a hard month.

In Matthew 25, Jesus describes the moment when the righteous stand before Him and learn what their lives amounted to from the Kingdom perspective. The surprising thing isn’t what they did—it’s that they didn’t realize they were doing it.

“Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?” (Matthew 25:37–39 NIV).

Whatever you do for the person in front of you, you do for Jesus.

They weren’t tracking their impact. They chose to be present—to the person in front of them, in the moment they were given. And Jesus answers: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40 NIV).

The person in front of you was always the mission.

That reorders what love for humanity actually requires. Jesus describes how a cup of water, a visit, or the kind of thing you do on a regular Wednesday—or almost didn’t do because you were busy—makes all the difference in the world for the One.

Galatians 6:10 says, “As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people” (NIV). Opportunity here is the moment the Holy Spirit places in front of you—the coworker who stops by your desk with a question that isn’t really about the question, the neighbor you keep meaning to check on, the family member who went quiet. The Holy Spirit doesn’t just comfort you. He directs your attention toward people who need what you can offer right now.

You don’t have to search for the mission. God has already placed it in front of you.

These moments aren’t interruptions, but the very work Jesus asks you to do. Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men” ESV).

Whatever you do—the meal you drop off, the errand you run, the two minutes you give someone who needs to be heard. God receives those moments. The person on the receiving end encounters His love through yours.

This is how God moves through ordinary people as they go about their regular days. He positions you—at the right desk, the right door, the right table—and the person He wants to reach is already there.

Before this day ends, ask the Holy Spirit to show you who that person is. You already know. Do the next right one thing for them.

Want to go deeper? Check our five-day YouVersion devotional, A Life That Speaks: Serving Others with the Story You Live. Each day pairs a scripture image Jesus chose—a lamp, salt, a mustard seed—with one anchoring truth about the lasting power of a faithful, ordinary life. It’s free, it’s five days, and it starts with a question you’re probably already asking: Does what I give actually matter? Find A Life That Speaks on YouVersion and start today.